Independent

I've become very accustomed to how independent Noah is. If I want to sleep in and Joey is at work. No problem. Noah wakes up. He comes to tell me he's awake and heads downstairs to watch tv or play until I get up. If he gets hungry he knows where the breakfast food is. He can pick his clothes out and get dressed by himself. I don't have to entertain him 24/7. I don't have to watch his every move every second of the day.

This all goes away soon. I'll definitely miss it. I'll LOVE having Emily here but I'll miss my days of sleeping in or taking a shower whenever I want. I think back to when Noah was a baby. My day revolved around him. That's okay. That's how it should be. That's what being a mom is. I also need to keep reminding myself that this time Joey will be here to help me. Last time he was deployed the entire first year so I was pretty much on my own. This time I'll have help.

Sometimes I wish that Noah and Emily would be closer in age. Then I really think about it and and I kind of like that he is a little older. While I'm taking care of her I don't have to worry about also watching him every second. He's already telling me that he will be my helper. I can't wait to see them together!

Around here...

Summer vacation is in full swing and I've been spending a lot of time with this goofball. He really makes me laugh all the time. He gets his sense of humor from his dad. I often say things I think are funny then realize that YEP I'm the only one laughing... oh well.

Soccer is almost over! =(
We have one game left and then we have to wait until the fall season starts. It's been so exciting to watch Noah grow and learn in this sport. He's less afraid to get in there and go for the ball. He's scoring goals! That is always exciting for us as his parents and of course for him. I love the big smile that spreads across his face when he looks over to see if we we were watching.

Food! Food commercials used to be my enemy when I was having morning/all day sickness. I really avoided watching tv because I couldn't stand to see the food. NOW they just make me want to eat whatever is being advertised. I'm lucky to have a husband who will go get a ridiculous amount of food for me at night time...well after we've eaten dinner lol.

I can NOT wait to sit and have ridiculous conversations with my sister in a few days! Texts and phone calls just aren't the same.

I'm also excited to reunite these two! Bella always gets excited when I say Ginger's name. She's my mom's dog and Bella loves her.

Noah has been helping me get Emily's room ready. I've seen the first little bit of jealousy coming out... We went to the store to buy things to get crafty and make stuff for her room. When we got home and sat down to paint Noah asked what stuff was going to be for his room.... oops. I didn't even think that maybe he would want to make something for his room too. Luckily I did have an extra canvas for him to paint whatever he wanted on. That combined with a HUGE promise that when we return from Louisiana we will go buy things to make for his room seemed to make him feel better. I need to remember to try to keep everything balanced between the two of them....

I leave you with this photo because...well...it just makes me laugh.
He came running down the stairs like this. He made a super hero costume out of a plastic bag. It's still in his room hung up on a hook with his super hero capes. Sooo I guess we're keeping that lol.

What's Left of Me

Goodreads - What's Left of Me

From Goodreads:
Eva and Addie started out the same way as everyone else—two souls woven together in one body, taking turns controlling their movements as they learned how to walk, how to sing, how to dance. But as they grew, so did the worried whispers. Why aren't they settling? Why isn't one of them fading? The doctors ran tests, the neighbors shied away, and their parents begged for more time. Finally Addie was pronounced healthy and Eva was declared gone. Except, she wasn't . . .

For the past three years, Eva has clung to the remnants of her life. Only Addie knows she’s still there, trapped inside their body. Then one day, they discover there may be a way for Eva to move again. The risks are unimaginable-hybrids are considered a threat to society, so if they are caught, Addie and Eva will be locked away with the others. And yet . . . for a chance to smile, to twirl, to speak, Eva will do anything.

In What's Left of Me Addie is more the rule follower and Eve is the more adventurous one. Addie controls their body so Eve is just present inside the body. When Addie begins to spend more time with an outcast girl from school she discovers there might be more people like her and Eve out there than she thought. When Addie and Eve are offered the chance to teach Eve to move again it sends them on a journey neither of them ever wanted to be on. They find that the government hasn't been truthful with its citizens. Maybe having one soul fade away from the body isn't so normal after all? Is it possible to function as a hybrid?

Things I loved:
- Really easy to get into. I had an instant understanding and connection with the main characters. 
- The story moved at a fast pace. There weren't any dull parts dragging on forever.
- I thought Kat Zhang did an excellent job writing the conversations inside Eve and Addie's minds. That could have easily been very confusing when Addie is speaking to some one and Eve is talking to Addie inside the body at the same time!
- Kat dipped into the relationship pool towards the end of this book. I'm interested to see what happens in the second book. Eve is fond of another Hybrid. Addie not so much. How does that work?

Things that bothered me:
- Some parts of the book felt rushed almost like the author knew where she wanted the story to end up and was in a hurry to get there. 
- I thought there could have been more of a climax in the story. There was all this build up but then things fell into place too easily for me. It could have been more dramatic than it was. 
- I wish that a better explanation would have been given about why hybrids are so dangerous to society. Maybe she'll tell us more in the second book?

Overall I really liked this book and I will read the second one when it comes out (September 2013). My favorite part of this book was the relationship between Eve and Addie. They love each other very much. Imagine how hard it would be to have someone you cared for living in your body with you. You're never alone. That can be comforting and a burden. Eve hasn't moved the body in years. While Addie wants to give Eve a chance to move again she's also afraid of losing herself in the process. They are two separate people but also the same person.

Great book!

The Book Chat - Book Blogging?

Am I a book blogger? I think I am... a little bit. My blog isn't devoted to books but I do spend a good amount of time reviewing the books I read. I don't review books for other people, just the ones I find interesting. If you read any of my recent posts you probably won't find much about books though. I was going through a reading drought. Now I'm BACK! My library bag is stuffed with books. I've been reading every day so reviews will pop up here shortly.

Blogging has pushed me to read more. I've always been a big reader but finding REALLY good books has always been hard. (Enter the blogging world!) Through blogging I've been given great recommendations on what to read. I've read books I never would have read otherwise.

When I started my blog I had no idea what direction I wanted it to take. I'm still really unsure. I DO know I want books to be part of it because they are such a big part of me.

Oh the Dreams You'll Dream

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For some reason most women have really vivid dreams during pregnancy. I've read that it is probably due to that burst of hormones (again they can be blamed for everything I guess) as well as the fact that you wake up more during the night. The more you wake up the more likely you are to wake during a REM cycle and remember the craziness going on in your head.

Here are a few of my odd ones....

The Duggars want to take my baby.
I dreamed that the Duggars kept following me around to my appointments. They were making plans to steal my baby! I kept telling them to leave me alone. They have enough babies of their own why do they want mine?
(I happen to love 19 Kids and Counting. Perhaps I had this dream because I fell asleep after watching a marathon?)

Joey gets stabbed at six flags.
We were enjoying a nice day at the park when all of a sudden someone stabs my husband! He kept telling me he was fine but he was obviously in need of medical attention. He continued to stroll leisurely through the park as I begged everyone to help him but no one would. I was the only one that could see his injury. Totally creepy!

Missing my friends. I woke up crying from this one....
In my dream I was back in high school. I was hanging out with my swim team friends. (little note here: We did NOT have a swim team in high school. Also? I don't remember any of the people in my dream ever being at my high school...) I said goodbye to them at the end of practice and immediately became sad. I woke up crying and missing these fictional people. I felt like a crazy person!

My poor sister.
I dreamed she got on a plane and for some reason that plane flew into outer space where it didn't belong. No one survived. I also woke up crying from this one!

Tornadoes.
I dream about tornadoes a LOT. I'm always looking for someone in my family. I always end up finding them but it's always a scary journey to get there. I wake up REALLY afraid. Not fun!