Life with the Liggetts: Getting Ready For Baby

When Jackson was born, I was in no way ready. Physically, mentally, emotionally...not ready at all. I hadn't washed any baby clothes, I didn't have a birth plan, I had a baby shower planned for the very next day {and another the next weekend}, and although the nursery had been painted and the crib was put together, that room had become a catchall for all of the gifts that needed to be washed and put away. In my defense though, Jackson was born almost 4 weeks early and totally caught us off guard.

At the beginning of this pregnancy, I asked my doctor whether or not he thinks this baby will be born early, and although he hasn't really answered one way or the other {aside from saying that he's not worried if he does since Jackson was a healthy 7 pounds 11 ounces}, I am determined to be more ready than I was last time. Although my due date isn't until August 7th, my goal from the beginning has been to be as ready as possible at 36 weeks...just in case. And in addition to getting the nursery and everything baby related ready, I also had plans to fit in as many fun things with Jackson as I could since I know both of our worlds will soon be turned upside down and never quite be the same.

As much as we talk about "baby brother", this sweet boy has

no idea how much life as we know it is about to change.

Aside from celebrating both America's and Pops' birthdays, we intentionally didn't make many plans over the past couple of weeks so that we could concentrate on getting ready for the baby before I hit 36 weeks, which officially happened this past Friday.

July 4th was pretty low-key for us this year. We started the day off with a neighborhood parade, and although it was far from flashy, it had both candy and kids-galore so it was a complete success in Jackson's eyes.

"Show me your candy and say 'cheese'".

Our neighborhood besties {plus a couple of friends} --

Kate, Lila, Harper, Jackson, Evelyn, Charlie, Liam...

...and 4-day-old baby Lucy

Afterwards we headed over to a neighbors for breakfast and then went back to our house for a little AC {for me} and a little digging and water fun for these two boys.

During naptime, I washed all of the baby clothes, blankets, burp clothes, etc. while Ben spent his time outside working on his honey-do list.

I'm not sure if it's the basketball shorts or the boots, but no one else could possibly make stump-removal look quite this good.

As soon as Jackson was up, we decided to head out to the Hill Country Galleria to see what their celebration had to offer. Unfortunately, it was pretty hot out there and the fact that every ride was free made the lines ridiculously long, but in addition to scoring a free balloon, they also had live music and pretty good people watching, so thankfully it wasn't a total bust.

There were also quite a few ducks {and the cutest little ducklings!} in the detention pond on the way to the car, and thankfully we happened to have a small container of goldfish with us that they devoured in no time.

On the way home, we stopped for dinner at Jackson's very favorite -- Hat Creek. Usually this place is packed on the weekends {and I mean PACKED}, but there were only a couple of other families there when we showed up, and pretty soon, we were the only ones left. It wasn't long before Jackson talked Ben into going up the stairs and down the slide with him, which of course, Jackson loved. Ben maybe not so much though -- he said that the spiral slide was so tight that his legs were already trying to go around one curve when his body still wasn't finished coming around the one before it.

The king of Hat Creek.

Because when your parents take you home for bed instead of out to see fireworks, the least they can do is give you a can of shaving cream to waste...I mean play with.

On Pops' birthday, we celebrated over at their house with dinner, swimming, noodle-water-gunning, and of course, cake and ice cream.

These two are like peas in a pod when it comes to cake and ice cream -- especially the ice cream.

Over the past couple of weeks, we've also had our fair share of errand-running to do, and thankfully Jackson has been the best sidekick -- even at my 34 week prenatal appointment.

Seriously, what genius thought it'd be a good idea to put the candy on the same aisle as the cereal?

Decorating mom's car with the Buddy Bucks stickers while she unloads the groceries.

Unfortunately, we weren't able to get in to see Jackson's usual stylist for a much-needed haircut. This lady did a great job, but in addition to expecting Jackson to behave like a 12-year-old instead of a 2-year-old {a.k.a. sit completely still and look nowhere but forward}, she called him her challenge for the day and commented that she wasn't sure how I'd be able to do it once the baby got here. Needless to say, we won't be going back to her.

When it came time to make an Ikea trip for toy storage, we instead took him over to Pops and Memaw's house. And big news -- the waterfall that is front of a nearby neighborhood and has been turned off for as long as I can remember is now working! Over the past few months, Jackson would comment on the fact that it was broken and that Pops needed to fix it every time that we went to their house. Needless to say, he is so excited that Pops fixed it {I wish I could get credit for something I didn't do!} and loves riding over there on the gator to get a closer look.

We also decided to take Jackson's electric truck over to their house so that he'd have more room to ride it. My dad gave it to him this past Christmas, and although he loves riding it, it's a little difficult to maneuver on the sidewalk since we don't want him riding it in the street. We definitely should have done this earlier though because he loved it!

Jackson's favorite way to shoot hoops.

And for being only two-and-a-half, both his shooting and catching skills are pretty good.

Doughnut holes are definitely our secret to a {somewhat} successful church service.

Because my due date is the week of this year's Vacation Bible School, I thought it'd probably be best to not volunteer but instead help out with some of the prep work. And let me tell you...nothing tests your patience quite like painting with a bunch of elementary aged kids. In my opinion, painting outside of the lines is a lot like mixing your playdough colors. It's just not right.

Over the past couple of weeks, the extreme heat and my extra fluff have also caused us to visit many a pool and splash pad.

One morning, we crashed a Stroller Strides playdate at Northwest Pool, and even after everybody else had left, Jackson had a great time swimming in the shallow pool and jumping in all by himself.

A break for the lifeguards = raisins for J.

On another day, we headed over to Bartholomew Pool after Jackson was up from his nap.

I had remembered seeing this pool last year and thinking that it looked like they had a lot of fun stuff for kids, and although it was PACKED and most of the it was geared towards kids a little older than him, Jackson still had a blast swimming and going down the frog slide over and over and over again.

Another raisin break.

We also visited Pease Park with the Crisp family.

In addition to having fun in the water, Kaycee was also interviewed by the local news about her opinion on childhood vaccinations. However, after seeing the segment on TV that night, we both agreed that Jackson and Caroline totally stole the show as the picture was of them playing in the water while Kaycee talked.

Although their interaction often looks rough, I can assure you it's nothing but fun and lots of hugs...even when the other one isn't totally feeling it.

Both Ben and Holly had the Friday before July 4th off, so they joined us for a trip to the Brushy Creek Splash Pad in Cedar Park. Apparently I wasn't the only one with this idea though.

In spite of the crowds {I actually think Jackson sometimes thrives on crowds}, Jackson had a great time and oddly enough spent most of it under this bridge where there was no water. The ground was super spongy though, which he loved bouncing around on.

He loved shooting the cannon, and the other kid loved being sprayed. Definitely a match made in Heaven.

Proof that the photographer was there, too.

Another morning, we met my mom at the Ricky Guerrero Splash Pad.

We had never been there before but had heard great things about all of the shade trees, but of course, Jackson chose to spend most of his time digging in the gravel and playing on this cannon, which was not shaded at all. Oh well. We had fun {and we had sunscreen}, so that's all that matters.

I'm not gonna lie -- I'll do just about anything for that smile. Even if it means driving with the windows down while singing along to "Two Banana Day", which is currently his very favorite.

In other news, my feet continue to swell to the point where one day my shoe totally gave out while sitting at my desk. Pay no attention to the severely chipped polish though. Thankfully I was able to find the time for a much-needed pedicure this past weekend, too.

And while I've been working {and breaking shoes}, Jackson has been living it up at Mimi's house -- playing guns with Jack, making bullets out of playdough, and baking cupcakes.

I'm not gonna lie -- in addition to bullets, these look a whole lot like something else.

And I've already decided that the next time that Jackson and Mimi decide to bake these cupcakes, I'm going to let them stay at her house.

Jackson and I have also done some baking {and sampling} of our own over the past couple of weeks.

I obviously forgot to check the oven {our current hiding spot for any and all treats} before preheating it.

Making mine and G's very favorite blueberry pancake recipe.

Waiting on the oven and watching old cartoons on the iPad.

It's never as beautiful as G's were, but thankfully it always tastes just as delicious.

We've also had quite a bit of fun at home, too.

Jackson is also doing his best to help us get ready for the baby. When he found these football rattle socks in the drawer, I explained to him that they were baby brother's and much too small for Jackson, but he insisted on proving me wrong and gave them a little test run, if you will.

I love watching him use his little imagination, and when he figured out that he could put the firefighter inside of the crane to drive it, I was just as excited as he was.

Filling his truck with diesel -- just like Daddy.

These boys and their water.

Scooter riding with his best bud Charlie.

This past Friday night, Jackson spent the night at Kyle and Steve's house. We went to dinner with some friends and then slept in the next morning -- although some of us slept a lot later than others.

Meanwhile I was busy washing and sterilizing all of the bottles and pump parts.

After Ben raised the crib mattress, I also put the crib skirt and bumpers back in, and then I promptly fell back in love with the bedding that I chose three years ago all over again.

Yesterday afternoon, Cheryl and Holly hosted such a nice diaper party for us. We got so many diapers and wipes and had a great time hanging out with everybody while snacking on all sorts of good food including a nacho bar and the cutest and most delicious cookies, too.

This morning after church, our Sunday School class hosted a welcoming reception for our newest pastor. Although the food and the decorations turned out great, we also had about 20 little kids running around chasing each other the entire time, so I'm not quite sure the staff will ever ask us to host again. That being said though, I truly believe that these silly kids are one of the best things about our church. Just watching them, you can't help but notice how bright {and full of energy!} the future is.

Speaking of energy, after today's nap, we met the Allens at the Clarksville Splash Pad to burn off some energy and then headed over to SnoBeach to cool off with some snow cones.