Great time at the Air Show

David, the boys, and I enjoyed our adventure at the Ramona Air Show this morning. We got to see lots of cool airplanes land and take off, we saw 3 CDF planes drop red, white, and blue fire retardant, and we walked around all the parked airplanes and got to see them up close. Jack kept running around shouting "These are the coolest planes EVER!" and various sorts of exclamations like that --- he was so thrilled! One of my favorite planes was a WWII Avenger, a Navy torpedo plane that went on aircraft carriers (it's wings were in a folded position like it would be on a carrier, to take up less space) -- and one of it's nicknames was The Pregnant Beast, which I thought was funny :).

After we had a good look at all the airplanes, it was lunchtime so we decided to go out to Denny's as a treat. We got the boys some kids' chocolate shakes with their lunches, which they thought was awesome. Then we headed home and BOTH boys took a 3+ hour nap!!

During that time, David and I had a chance to relax and watch some DVD shows, and I toyed around with some little sewing projects for the boys. It's been a very relaxing Saturday so far, and the weather is great.

I'm still feeling good -- no signs that labor is on its way yet, but that's OK. I read about a woman who was thankful for the "mystery" of not knowing when her baby would be born (as opposed to the times she had been induced/c-section and knew exactly when the baby was coming), so I'm taking that to heart. As frustrating as it is to NOT know when Peter is coming, it is also kind of cool (and one of the rare times in my life) that I don't know what the heck is going on, so I'm trying to enjoy all the mystery and excitement and anxious awaiting that come along with that.

Not much news

I had a good, uneventful, dr's appoinment today. Everything looks good --- blood pressure is fine, and the dr said Peter "isn't getting too big yet" :). He asked if I've been having contractions (I've had some, but nothing painful and nothing regular) and since I really haven't had much of any, he didn't check to see if I'm dilated at all. And that's fine with me -- I'm a little curious, but would truthfully be a tiny bit disappointed if I weren't dilated at all yet. So it was a quick appointment and I go back next Thursday for my 40 week +1 day appointment. If I haven't had Peter by then, I'll have to start going in for twice-weekly monitoring at the hospital make sure Peter is tolerating this last part of pregnancy OK. If they feel like he's in distress they'll start an induction, otherwise they'll let me go to about 42 weeks and then they'll do the induction. I would really love to go into labor on my own, at some point, so if you can spare some prayers for that I would really appreciate it!

Kim went with us to the appointment today so I could go into the exam room without 2 crazy boys running around, and then we had a picnic lunch at the park near Kim and Michael's apartment afterward -- it was lovely! Next Thursday also happens to be Kim's next appointment, so we get to carpool once again. It's weird to think that if I do go 2 weeks overdue, Kim will be 37 weeks along, so close to full term herself!

Our garden is doing very well -- I finally took some updated pictures today. I have 6 tomato plants (3 large with tiny green tomatoes on them, and 3 small ones), 2 pumpkin plants, 2 cucumber plants, a row of lettuce, a mangled row of carrots (something came by and ate a bunch of the tops off), and I started some basil and peppermint seeds but haven't seen them sprout yet. It's such a neat feeling to be growing some of our own food!

(Left to right) pumpkin and cucumber, another pumpkin, 3 tomato plants, a row of lettuce, a tiny row of carrots, and 3 large tomato plants:

Cucumber plant (top left) and monster pumpkin plant:

Jack and Thomas checking for baby green tomatoes:

39 Weeks and a Good Dental Visit!

A week from today is my due date. I had predicted May 25th as Peter's birthday, but that (obviously) came and went without any fanfare. I know feelings don't account for much, since I could go into labor at any time without necessarily feeling like it's imminent, but I just don't feel like Peter is ready to come out yet. I'm feeling very good, which I'm thankful for, but I also feel like I could just go on being pregnant forever at this rate! My mind is playing tricks on me, though -- very weird, vivid dreams, and sometimes even a panicked feeling when I first wake up that my huge pregnant belly is inexplicably gone (of course that's remedied as soon as I try and roll over or get out of bed). So maybe some sort of pre-labor hormones are wreaking havoc on my mind, which might be progress. Some days I also have to work hard to keep an even mood -- without being too impatient with the boys or generally cranky. But overall I'm feeling very good for being this far along, and I honestly don't feel too disheartened by the thought of having to wait another week or two (or three) until Peter comes. There are actually a few things I'd like to be able to do without worrying about recovering from childbirth/caring for a newborn -- like the Ramona Air show (this weekend) and our church's annual Country Fair (next weekend). So thinking about possibly getting to enjoy those outings with David and the boys is buoying my spirits also.

I was SO proud of Jack and Thomas today. They both had dental checkups (Thomas's very first, and Jack's third?, although up until now Jack has always been too scared to get X-rays or a cleaning done). Jack did so well!! I couldn't be anywhere near the X-ray machine, so I explained that to him and he did just fine! He cooperated completely with the dental assistants, and let them clean his teeth, check for cavities (none!) and put fluoride on. I can't believe how different (and grown up) he is from the last time we were there -- just about 6 months ago. Thomas didn't need X-rays or a cleaning since he's so little, but the dentist did do a quick visual check just to make sure there was no decay, and he looked great also! Thomas was a little worried about having his teeth checked, but he opened his mouth really wide when they asked him to, and was generally very cooperative. I'm really relieved to have that appointment taken care of, and to have had it go so well.

Tomorrow is my next pre-natal checkup, so I'll update again if there's anything interesting to tell!

My house is quiet!

In a VERY rare occurrence, both Jack and Thomas are asleep right now! My house is silent ... it's nice, but a little unnerving. Even when Jack takes his quiet time, I can usually hear him talking and singing to himself, rustling around in his room, etc. so it's not totally quiet.

We went to the San Diego Zoo today after my dr's appointment this morning, so that must have really tuckered the boys out. It was a great day for the Zoo -- not too crowded, a little overcast so it wasn't too hot, and we got to see lots of animals. We saw the Sea Lion show, which Jack especially loved. And both boys got a kick out of the hippo exhibit and the Insanely Huge Bugs exhibit :) -- Jack specifically requested that we see this one again, even though we just saw it a few weeks ago. We also saw Bearded Pigs, which I think was one of Thomas's favorites. They were cute in a bristly, beardy kind of way. Anyway, it was a good outing!

My dr's appointment went well, although I tested positive for being a carrier of Group B strep bacteria. Apparently it's a fairly common thing -- some women just carry the bacteria on their skin, and it doesn't pose any problems. But when a baby is born it can pick up some of the bacteria from the mother and become infected, so to prevent that I'll just have to have antibiotics during labor. And fortunately they're going to put an IV heplock in my arm, which will allow me to be connected and disconnected to the IV machine when needed, so I won't be tied to the IV pole the entire time I'm there.

Here are some pictures - one of today's visit to the Zoo and the other of the boys relaxing on our futon while we played a board game the other day.

Everyone is growing

This week has been good so far, a healthy balance between productive and fun. I hit 38 weeks today, and I’m hanging in there. I’m feeling pretty well, although I’ve been very tired the last couple of days. It’s a good thing that most of the stuff on my to-do list is taken care of, since I don’t have much energy to spare. And coffee hasn’t been appetizing to me this week, so I don’t have my usual “liquid motivation” to rely on. But I really can’t complain – I’m grateful to be feeling as good as I do, to have everyone else in the house as healthy as they are, etc. I managed to finish packing the hospital bag, wash and put away Peter’s clothes and blankets, return library books, mail soon-to-be-due bills, etc. I’m trying to prepare for the possibility of being at the hospital for longer than just the 2 days for a healthy, normal delivery. With Jack I think I was at the hospital for about 5 days because he had to spend some time in the special care nursery, and with Thomas I was there for about 4 days recovering from the c-section. So while I hope to be gone from home for just 2 days this time, I don’t want to count on it. And I know my Mom and David will do an awesome job of keeping everything running smoothly at the house, but I figure it can’t hurt if I try and tie up as many loose ends ahead of time as I can.

I can tell that Peter is definitely running out of room in my tummy – he seems to squirm and try to stretch out more lately than kick and punch. I’ve also been feeling his “practice breathing” which is really neat. I can even see my tummy rise and fall rhythmically (it must be when his back is close to the top of my tummy) as he exercises his lungs. It’s slower and less jerky than hiccups, and I like feeling it because I know he must be getting ready to come out sooner or later if he’s doing breathing exercises, right? I’ve heard that unborn babies actually start labor (I’m not sure exactly how, but they get the process going when they’re “ready” to come out, by their position or by a hormone they release or something), so maybe Peter is checking off stuff on his to-do list before he gets ready to leave. Lungs work OK, CHECK!

Jack and Thomas have been a lot of fun this week. I’ve been trying to spend more time doing things with them this week rather than having them just tag along/help as I do chores around the house (or do baby-preparation stuff, which they must be sick of!). So this week we’ve played puzzles, board games, colored, made paper bag puppets, went to the park, played in their little wading pool, and watched movies together. Tomorrow after my doctor’s appointment we’ll hit the Zoo, and maybe go to the big swimming pool on Friday or Saturday.

Jack surprised me this morning by saying grace on his own! I was still getting Thomas buckled into his booster seat, so it wasn’t quite time for grace yet, but Jack must have been pretty eager to dive in and start eating. I know he knows many of the words, but usually he declines when we ask him to say it along with us. As long as he’s respectful and quiet while we say grace, I’m fine with that for now. But today he was just rattling it off without my asking for it, so that was encouraging! It was funny, though, because his version started off “Bless us, O Lord, and these guys’ gifts…” Actually, not too bad!

Thomas, who is always eager to be a big boy like Jack, surprised me yesterday by washing his own hands in the boys’ bathroom! I had sent Jack to the bathroom to wash his hands before lunch, and Thomas dutifully followed. Jack came out when he was done, but Thomas was still back there, so I finished up in the kitchen and went to see what Thomas was up to. His feet were dangling in mid-air, his tummy was balanced on the bathroom counter, and he was washing his hands under the water (with soap even!). He can’t reach the faucet or sink very well from just the step stool, so he hoisted himself up onto the edge of the sink by using the cabinet knobs as footholds (!!!). Ay yay yay. He was pretty proud of himself for doing it all by himself (and I made sure to praise him for being such a big boy), but seeing him dangle off the edge of the sink like that made me imagine more broken ankles, bitten tongues, etc. if he were to fall down. He’s going to keep us one our toes, this one!

God bless...

Little old church ladies that look at me with disbelief when I tell them I'm due in 2 1/2 weeks and tell me I only look 7 months pregnant! It may be a big fat white lie on their part, but I love hearing that. I don't think you'll ever go wrong telling a hugely pregnant lady that they are carrying "small" :).

I'm feeling pretty good ... definitely starting to feel like Peter could come at any moment now (although I'm thinking he'll probably be on time or late, like his brothers). But I also keep hearing that "every pregnancy is different" so there is a possibility that he could come a little early. I'm probably tempting fate since my hospital bag still isn't packed yet. I did make a list of what's suppposed to go in the bag, so that's a step in the right direction. I'm trying not to pack too much since, but I can't seem to shake the feeling that I'm forgetting a bunch of stuff that should go in there. You'd think I would have some idea of what to pack (being my 3rd kid and all!), but I forget exactly what I packed in my other bags.

I had a good ultrasound on Friday -- Peter is measuring exactly average for his gestational age. They estimated his current weight at 6lb 14oz. I was a little worried that it was a high weight, since he still has 2-4 weeks to fatten up, but apparently he's not on track to be a ginormous baby after all. Yay! And they took another look at his heart, brain, and amniotic fluid level as a routine part of the exam, and everything looks great there. And, also important, they affirmed that he is still a he.

So my week of crazy appointments is over. The boys had good checkups last Thursday -- they're growing well and are as healthy as can be. My little white car got tuned up, and sometime this week I'm going to try to get her detailed so we can put her on the market. I'd love to have her sold before Peter comes, but we'll see how that goes.

On tap this week is a trip to the doctor's for me on Thursday morning. It should be just a quick check on Peter's growth, and so after we're done with that I plan to take the boys to the Zoo since it's close to the doctor's office. Jack's special request is to see the hippopotamuses (hippopotami?), so we'll try to make that happen. Then David has a BBQ for work on Thursday evening, and we're all going to that. Then he has a 4-day-weekend!

I'm predicting that Peter will come on May 25th (no particular reason, that date just popped into my head) so we'll see if that happens. Fortunately I'm feeling pretty good, so if I go overdue hopefully I won't be terribly uncomfortable. Let the wait begin!

37 Weeks

So I've been sort of rounding up my # of weeks pregnant (like by the weekend I start thinking of myself as one more week pregnant, even though Wednesday is my actual turnover day) ... so now it's officially exactly 3 weeks until my due date :).

I'm torn between feeling like there's an infinity of pregnancy (this reminds me of "I already made like a 'finity of them at boyscout camp" :) ) left, and not enough time! David wants me to start sitting on a towel in our minivan in case my water breaks while I'm driving somewhere :). I feel silly doing it this early, but he does have a point. And having my water break at some inconvenient place or time has always been one of my little worries toward the end of pregnancy -- what if my water breaks at Church? The car? Our couch? Someone else's couch? It can't hurt to be prepared (as much as one can be prepared for this kind of thing).

My 37-week appointment went well yesterday. My doctor poked and prodded Peter and thinks that he might weigh close to 7 lbs already. Ack! He probably has a few more weeks of cooking left! My doctor wants to see if we can keep Peter under 8 lb 11 oz (Thomas's birth weight) since his size was part of the reason I needed a c-section. However, David pointed out to me last night that it wasn't just Thomas's overall weight, but really more his ginormous head that prevented him from descending during labor. So Peter can be kind of chubby as long as his head isn't too big. Thomas's head is still huge -- it's bigger than Jack's is! And there's not much I can do about genes. But, just to try and help, my doctor wants me to watch my sugar and carb intake over the next few weeks since that "goes straight to the baby". I don't think it should be too hard. Peter is starting to squish my stomach, so I don't really feel as hungry as I had been feeling.

I think yesterday was likely the last time that Kim and I will have share the same appointment date. I start going every week now, and she goes back in 3 weeks. I think we've had around 4-5 appointments on the same day, and it's been awesome to carpool together and grab lunch afterward. Yesterday Kim and I had different times, but she stuck around so she could watch Jack and Thomas in the waiting room while I had my appointment, which was great. It is such a huge blessing to be pregnant at the same time she is. Pregnancy is an amazing experience to begin with, but to share it (especially on such a close timeframe) with my sister and best girlfriend is such a treasure. There are things I know I'll miss after I've had Peter, like feeling him kick inside, the sense of expectation and awaiting -- and sharing this experience with Kim is definitely one of them. But I know this is just the beginning, and I look forward to a lifetime of our babies and families growing up together!

In other news, Thomas had his follow-up orthopedic appointment this morning, and his ankle is 100% healed from his fracture. They were a little concerned because the break was near a growth plate, but the x-ray today showed that the growth plate looks great and he doesn't need any more follow-ups. Hooray! I do wonder, considering his daring spirit, if there will be more broken bones in his future... somehow I really wouldn't be surprised, and I can't (and wouldn't dream of) take the boyness or boldness out of him, so we'll see. I'll just have to do my best to make sure he's as safe as reasonably possible.

Tomorrow the boys have their 4-year old and 2-year old check ups (Jack has been telling me "I don't need any shots tomorrow!"). So I'll update again if there is anything interesting.

Birthday Pictures

Here's the black train cake that I made for the boys' birthday. The cake is covered with a chocolate clay (which was semisweet chocolate + light corn syrup + a lot of black food coloring) that is chewy like Tootsie Rolls. The train engine and coal car are modeled after a black electric train that we get out at Christmastime. The boys love it because Grandpa Campbell gave it to us, and the engine smokes when you put little oil drops in the smokestack. The blue train car is supposed to be a caboose (Jack specifically requested blue), but I didn't look at a picture of a caboose before making it (and to be honest, I was tired by the time I got to it!), so it looks more like an automobile car than a train car. Oh well!

And here are some more shots of the boys and their new baseball gear. They love their Dodger hats!

Farewell, Dumpster

I had our dumpster service cancelled today, and to be honest I think I'll miss it a little bit. I threw away just about every big-ticket-item around the house and in the yard that I could think of, so it was time to send the Dumpster back. It was awesome to have that ability to just toss whatever I needed to toss without worrying about fitting it into a trash can, though.

The back yard looks pretty good -- although there is still more work that I'd eventually like to do. There are several stumps I'd like to dig up, and some more bushes I'd like to trim, but I'm slowing down and can't see myself making much progress on it over the next few weeks. I'm pleased, though, it looks pretty good and I think we threw away 5 or so Dumpster loads of brush.

Just about 3 weeks left

(Hopefully not much longer than that!) until we bring home our 3rd baby boy. On my to-do list this week is starting my hospital bag, installing Peter's car seat, and finding a place to put his clean baby clothes. I also have a bunch of appointments this week -- an OB appointment on Tuesday, an orthopedic appointment for Thomas on Wed. to make sure his ankle healed OK from his fracture, well-child visits for both Jack and Thomas on Thursday, and an ultrasound to see how big baby Peter is on Friday! I also scheduled Jack and Thomas for their dental checkups for the last week of May -- it's cutting it kind of close to my due date, but I'm hoping to get that taken care of while I only have the 2 kids to wrangle in the waiting room,. It'll be a busy week, but I'll have some peace of mind at the end of it that Jack and Thomas are all caught up on their appointments before Peter comes.

Other than that, I'm feeling pretty good and am trying to enjoy these last few weeks of pregnancy. Although I'm eager to meet Peter, to have labor and delivery behind me, and to be not pregnant :), I'm not as eager or anxious as I think I was before having Jack and Thomas. I'm trying to enjoy it as much as I can, esepcially because I have no idea how many more kids we'll be blessed with. I'd love more kids, but I don't know what the future will hold for our family, so I'm doing my best not to rush things along and take the gift of pregnancy for granted. It's hard to explain, but for me this last part of pregnancy is also good for my spiritual life. I have to do a lot things that I don't always feel like doing, especially with 2 little kids to take care of. It's good for me to do those things despite what I feel like doing, and to do them cheerfully. I also feel like my body is not really in my control anymore -- I'm giving it up, or at least some of my bodily comforts, for the sake of the little baby inside of it. And that gives me pause when I think of what Christ endured for us. And, most dominant on mind mind now, is the whole "you know not the hour" deal. Most things in my daily life fall into one of two categories: they are either planned/organized by me (or I have significant input) or they are totally unexpected events that I have to handle as they come up (like getting sick or a kid breaking an ankle). But having baby Peter is a BIG deal that I know for certain is going to happen at some point in the next 3-5 weeks, but I have no idea and no control over when/where/how it's going to happen. It's weird for me to have foreknowledge of such a big event, and not much in the way of control :). It definitely gives me different perspective on the preparing for and "anxiously awaiting" of a much bigger event -- Christ's return to Earth, or even my own death and meeting Christ at my judgment. I *know* these events are going to happen, but I get caught up in the day-to-day stuff and they don't seem as real to me as they should. So, I am thankful for the little reminder in my tummy.

Well, that's a long way of saying that I'm feeling good and am trying to make the most out of the last few weeks before all heck breaks loose with a crazy new little boy to care for "on the outside". :). Since this week is "appointment week", I'm hoping that next week I can take the boys to the Zoo and/or the Animal Park and enjoy some quality time with them.

4 Years Ago Today...

We welcomed baby Jack into our arms. What a crazy, funny little man he is becoming! I'm not sure exactly when he transitioned from being the "baby" or "toddler" stage to the little boy stage, but he's firmly there now. For so long it seems like he was sort of parroting back our expressions, stories, words, etc. and now he's off on his own. Sometimes I wonder how in the world he thinks up such off-the-wall things. He makes up crazy pretend scenarios (i.e. his empty grape sprig after he's eaten all the grapes off of it becomes a dragon that talks in a high pitched voice!).

Jack definitely has a flair for the dramatic, which is very amusing, although it can be frustrating. He still thinks up crazy excuses for not being able to do something we've asked of him, like washing his hands before a meal. Yesterday was funny because we decided to give Thomas one small toy airplane on his actual birthday (and Jack will get the same thing today). We'll do a couple more gifts for them on both on Saturday. David talked to Jack about letting Thomas open a birthday present and Jack seemed OK with it, but when it came down to the actual present-opening, Jack got very melancholy and exclaimed "No, no, I don't want any birthday presents tomorrow. I got lots of presents at Christmas" and things of that sort in a very sad, down voice. He snapped out of it fairly quickly, but it's funny that he chose to go the Eeyore route rather than getting angry that Thomas was getting a present when he wasn't.

Jack has definite preferences that he has no problems sharing with others. He sticks up for his quirky particularities and won't be persuaded by what everyone else is doing. He used to be (and still can be) shy when meeting new people, but lately he talks to random people pretty darn freely. He'll yell at the workers in the neighbor's yard "Hi! What are you doing? I'm just outside with my brother..." and then he launches into a 5 minute monologue about anything and everything until I gently pull him away :). Yesterday the first thing he said to two little boys he saw at the park was "These are my wedding shoes" while pointing to his black shoes that, indeed, he did wear to Aunt Wheetah's wedding nearly 9 months ago! The boys said "What?" and Jack repeated the same thing clearly and slowly, and then one of them quickly agreed "Yeah, you are!" Ah, the power of stating your position assertively and with authority :).

So, maybe we're raising a construction foreman or a bishop! Jack has boundless energy, he is a very good and kind big brother to Thomas (most of the time), and he entertains us and keeps us on our toes from the moment he gets up to the moment he reluctantly falls asleep. :).

More pictures

Here are some more recent pictures that I've been meaning to post. The garden shot was taken a few weeks ago, when I was installing the gopher-proof mesh on the bottom. I need to take some more photos now, since we have lots of plants growing happily in it ! (7 tomato plants, 3 pumpkin plants, 2 cucumber plants, a row of lettuce seedlings, and carrots (which haven't sprouted yet).

The shot of Jack and Thomas at the San Diego Zoo was cool -- they were looking at sea otters swim past the "underwater" window.

2 Years Ago Today

Thomas was born! It feels like he's been in our family for longer than 2 years, but at the same time it seems like it has gone by quickly. I can't imagine our family without him in it -- he has a personality and sense of humor all his own, and he amuses and delights us all with his antics.

He's a brave little guy, which I'm sure is in part due to watching Jack and trying to keep up with him. But he readily tackles big slides, ladders, stairs, ocean waves, etc. without worrying about personal safety. It's a great character trait, but while he's small it does make me a little nervous!


He's also very loving and likes to run up and hug people and exclaim "I yuv you!". He also likes to make sure everyone is included in the fun. One time recently Jack was taking a nap (!!!) and Thomas woke up from his nap early. I tried to steer Thomas toward getting snack or doing something fun, but he wouldn't have anything to do with it until Jack was up. He actually rushed into Jack's room and woke him up saying "C'mon, Jack, c'mon!". He also likes to be sure to say a hearty "Hello" or "Hiii" when first seeing someone, followed by a prolonged series of good-byes when they're leaving. And lately he'll throw in a "Good morning" for good measure.



Thomas also has a pretty well-developed sense of justice. He has put himself in time out when he's being disobedient (but not quite to the point where I feel he needs a time out from me). He just runs over the corner and puts himself there, and if I ask if he put himself in time out he says "Yeah" just as matter-of-factly as could be.

Today I've been trying to work some of his favorites foods into the menu rotation. We had lemon scones and strawberry-banana smoothies for breakfast, quesadillas and applesauce and salad for lunch, and biscuits and gravy and fruit salad for dinner! I'm making a train cake for Saturday, but Thomas has already declared that he wants "Tractor cake" (made by Grammy and Poppi last weekend), so that's what he and Jack will have for dessert tonight.

I'm looking forward to Thomas as a 2-year-old. I remember I felt like Jack hit a rough patch between 2.5-3.5 or so, but in retrospect it really doesn't seem so bad! I guess it was my first time parenting a 2-year old, and maybe everything about it seemed harder. I feel more battle-hardened now, and it takes a lot more to frustrate and overwhelm me, so I'm looking forward to it. Having watched Jack go through this stage (and come out of it OK :)), it really is a fun time and interesting time, especially if you have a sense of humor about pretty much everything (which I'm getting better at!).

Some more recipes

I've posted a couple of recipes over in the Campbell's Kitchen blog (and I've added a link to this blog, under "Links" on the right side of this page). Enjoy!

Awesome Mother's Day gift

David surprised me last week with an early Mother's Day present -- and it is SO awesome!! It's a 23-quart pressure canner and canning kit, which means that I can can (OK, I should probably find a better way to write that since it sounds funny!) all kinds of things! A few years ago I canned apricot preserves using a boiling water method, and I was pleased with the results but it was hard since I didn't have any canning racks or special equipment. Also, lots of foods aren't acidic enough to be canned using the water method (since water only gets up to 212 degrees F, and botulism bacteria can survive at that temperature in low-acid foods). A pressure canner, however, gets the temp up to 242 degrees, I think, so botulism is totally obliterated and you don't have to rely on the acidity of the food being canned to ensure food safety. So now I can preserve a ton of stuff that I plan to make once I harvest my garden: tomatoes, spaghetti sauce, salsa, pumpkin, pumpkin butter. And I'd love to make up a bunch of apple butter when apples are in season this fall. I'm so excited!

Back online

Our computer is acting up, but thanks to my dad and his generous offer to let us borrow a laptop until our computer is up and running, I'm back!

I have some meatier posts lined up for the next couple of days, but I just wanted to pop in with a quick update tonight. David and I just had a lovely weekend to ourselves while the boys stayed with Grammy and Poppi. Friends from church had given us a gift certificate to a bed and breakfast in Julian (about 35 minutes east of Ramona, up in the mountains a bit). And the certficate included a 4-course dinner! We definitely enjoyed the getaway, the food, and the chance to be kid-free for a couple of days before we add another kid to the craziness! It was very relaxing and rejuvenating. Jack and Thomas had a great time at Grammy and Poppi's also.

Otherwise, we're closing in on the final 4-5 weeks of pregnancy here! I doubt my doctor will let me go much longer than 1 week overdue, so I'm figuring that I have about 5.5 weeks of pregnancy left, max. Somehow it's very comforting to put a cap on the time left, since this last month of pregnancy is proving to be a little uncomfortable. Fortunately, my hip is feeling less painful, but my hands and feet are retaining water, and that doesn't feel very good. I don't have much hand strength since the extra fluid makes it hard for me to close them tightly, and they go numb if I hold them in certain positions (I guess the extra fluid pushes on nerves or something). My doctor says that the best thing I can do is drink plenty of water and try to put my feet up, but I don't get many chances to do that during the day. So ... I'm counting on things staying kind of uncomfortable from here to the end, but I can definitely endure 5.5 more weeks!

I'm going to sign off and spend the rest of my evening relaxing with David, but I will post my May meal plan since I did actually manage to fill it all in, and that's a huge relief. I have some great recipes that I plan to post over on the Campebell's Kitchen blog, hopefully later this week!

5/1 - Gnocchi and red sauce, garlic cheese bread
5/2 - Dinner out
5/3 - Dinner out
5/4 - Hamburgers, spicy oven potato wedges, fruit
5/5- Taco boats
5/6 - Rosemary lemon pepper chicken over a salad, herb bread
5/7 - Breakfast for dinner (oven french toast?)
5/8 - Italian sausage sandwiches or hot dogs (Thomas' birthday dinner)
5/9 - Roast beef, biscuits, vegetable (Jack's birthday dinner)
5/10 - Nachos with pinto beans
5/11 - Chicago style deep dish pizza
5/12 - Leftover pizza
5/13 - Strata
5/14 - Teriyaki chicken stir fry
5/15 - Black bean tacos
5/16 - Baked tilapia or fried trout, cornbread
5/17 - Skillet dinner (kielbasa, peppers, potatoes, onions), molasses cheese bread
5/18 - Carnitas burritos or tacos, refried beans, chips and salsa
5/19 - Leftover carnitas
5/20 - Broccoli, cheese, potato quiche
5/21 - Hamburger stroganoff
5/22 - BLTs, deviled eggs, fruit salad
5/23 - Macaroni and cheese
5/24 - Enchiladas
5/25 - Kabobs
5/26 - Leftover kabobs
5/27 - Pasta primavera, garlic cheese bread
5/28 - Roast chicken, biscuits, gravy, vegetable
5/29 - Leftover chicken
5/30 - Red beans and rice
5/31 - Spaghetti and meatballs