Week in Review: Early to Rise...

We've had a good week! Aubrey has consistently been waking up earlier than she ever has :( And just in time for me to have a newborn who won't be sleeping much. I'm going to need an extra measure of energy and patience, I have a feeling... haha.

Sunday: Happy 4th of July! Even though it was Independence Day, we had a normal Sunday. We had nursery duty during church in Aubrey's room. It's always fun for us to watch Aubrey playing with her friends. We then went to Sunday School. When we got home from church, we had BBQ chicken for lunch. Aubrey and I took naps that afternoon, but David stuck to not taking a nap so as not to ruin his sleep that night. We went back to night church that evening. After church, David took Aubrey home, and I went to dinner with some friends, and then we saw Eclipse! I liked it a lot and actually want to see it in theaters again... don't know if it will happen though.

Monday: Aubrey woke up several times Sunday night/Monday morning. I don't know what the deal was, but I want my good sleeper back! She was up for the day at 6... Ughh! Thankfully, David was off work and got up with her. I felt really bad that he had to get up so early on his day off and offered to get up with Aubrey, but he let me sleep. He is SO sweet! After I got up, I did some cleaning around the house and went to the grocery store. We were having the Arants over that evening. David helped me get the house straightened up. When Aubrey went down for her nap, I did some cooking and David went to a memorial service. That afternoon after Aubrey got up and David got home, my grandparents brought a table for Jude's room over to our house. They were also able to entertain Aubrey for a little bit while David and I finished getting things ready for our company. David, Rebekkah, and Carver came over around 5, and we had fun hanging out. We grilled hamburgers and had a very laid back evening. Aubrey loves having people over because she is in her comfort zone and eats up all the extra attention. She was especially loving David Arant that night, but she loves that whole family. After our friends left, David put Aubrey to bed and we went to bed early too.

Tuesday: I was SO excited and thankful that Aubrey slept until 8! We had a very low-key morning. I bathed Aubrey and painted her toenails :) We then went to Target to get some things we needed. She and I both took a nap that afternoon. I'm feeling like I need a nap every afternoon these days, which can be annoying because I would rather be getting things done. I try to only take short naps on the couch instead of long ones in the bed though. Anyway, when David got home from work, he and Aubrey played while I got ready to go play Bunco. My mom, Rebekkah, and I rode to Bunco together. It was a lot of fun, and I played really well, surprisingly! I was tied for most games AND most Buncos! I got four Boncos. Wow! I won a gift card, so that was exciting. That day was our friend Megan's birthday, so after we finished playing, we took her to Margarita's and had chips/salsa and birthday cake. Lots of fun! That also meant LOTS of food since we have a full meal at Bunco. I felt so sick and had heartburn ALL night long. Miserable! I'm totally blaming it on the baby though, and not the large amounts of junk food I consumed. Haha, poor Jude. David and I went to bed shortly after I got home.

Wednesday: Sadly, Aubrey woke up early again. She woke up somewhere in the 6:00 hour, but David brought her to me at 7 when he needed to get in the shower. After breakfast, Aubrey and I went to Kroger. We didn't do a lot when we got home. I did several loads of laundry, and Aubrey played. We ate lunch, and Aubrey took a nap. I hung and sorted some baby clothes while she slept. One of these days I'll get it done! I also rearranged a few lamps and accessories. Aubrey woke up, David came home, they played outside, and I cooked dinner. I made Sarah Denley's fish and we loved it! I also made zucchini and sweet potatoes. I was trying to make up for all the junk I ate the day before by cooking a healthy dinner. Haha. After we ate, I did some more laundry and sorting of baby clothes. My family came over that evening to bring back part of Jude's crib that was broken that my dad fixed. I think they were really just looking for an excuse to see Aubrey. ;) They stayed and played for a while, and when they left we all went to bed.

Thursday: It's a good thing I went to bed early the night before, because Aubrey decided we should start our day at 6:20. Sadly, David wasn't even home to try to get her to go back to sleep -- he ALWAYS has more success than I do. When we get up so early, the mornings always seem so long, and I'm kind of at a loss as to what to do. I thought about putting Aubrey down early, but I'm really hoping this getting up early thing is a fluke, so I'm trying to keep her on her normal schedule. I had a doctor's appointment that afternoon, so I got ready for that. I did end up putting Aubrey down for her nap about an hour early, because she was tired and fussy and I needed to be able to get ready without her hanging on my legs crying for me to pick her up. She was so tired and went right to sleep for almost 4 hours. Silly girl needs to sleep later! :) My appointment went well, although it wasn't as exciting as I hoped it would be. That evening we went to karate, but we had to go separate from David because he was going to dinner with the other instructors after class. During karate, my mom, dad, Aubrey, and I went to the mall. I was looking for a nursing gown to wear at the hospital, but I didn't find what I wanted. After karate, Aubrey and I came home by ourselves. I had to put Aubrey to bed (David usually does) and she had a hard time going to sleep :( David got home kind of late, and I went to bed as soon as he got home.

Friday: Aubrey slept until 7... still earlier than I would like, but later than the day before! We hung out at home all morning, and then ate an early lunch and met Sarah Denley and Ann Peyton at the pool. This was the first time Aubrey had been to the pool all summer, and I was pretty sure she would enjoy it. I was right! She LOVED being in the "wa-wa" and threw a bit of a fit when we had to get out after two hours. It was nice to just be able to sit in the water and chat with SD. Makes me wish we had been doing it all summer! Oh well... next year I'll know that we definitely need to join a pool. We came home in time for Aubrey to CRASH! Another advantage to going to the pool -- good naps! I took a shower and rested while Aubrey slept. When Aubrey woke up, she ate her snack and then David was home. He gave her a bath while I got ready for dinner. We have LOTS of July birthdays in our family, and every year my grandfather takes us all out to a Hibachi place for dinner to celebrate all the July birthdays. We are excited to have another July birthday to celebrate soon! :) We had fun at dinner. The cooking scared Aubrey at first, and she sat really still in our laps just watching. When they gave her rice, she decided she would sit in her highchair and eat ;) She loved the food! We stopped at Target on the way home, and by the time we got home, it was time for Aubrey to go to bed. I decided to go on a walk after Aubrey went to bed to see if I could jump start some contractions. Haha. Really, I just needed to work off all the fried rice I ate for dinner ;) Since I was walking by myself at 10:00, I just stayed on our street.

Saturday: David had a theory that the reason Aubrey has been waking up so early is because her new room is a lot brighter than her old one was. So on Friday night, he put towels in her windows to see if she would sleep later. She slept until 8:30!! That was amazing! I'm really really hoping it wasn't a fluke... we'll see. Anyway, Aubrey and I met my mom and grandmother to shop this morning. We went to several stores and ate lunch, and then it was time to come home for Aubrey's nap. David had been working on projects at home, but he put Aubrey to bed when we got home. I went back and met up with my mom and grandmother again to get more stuff done. When I got home, Aubrey was just waking up from her nap, and all three of us got ready to go to dinner with David's parents. We ate at Olive Garden, and we went early thinking there wouldn't be a wait. There was, however, a 35 minute wait at 5:30. Ugh. Thankfully, Dee Dee (David's mom) was able to entertain Aubrey with all the pictures she keeps in her purse. We had a nice dinner. When we got home, David, Aubrey, Knightly, and I all went on a long walk. We walked about a mile and a half, so we'll see if I go into labor tonight. Haha. I really don't expect to, but it would be nice :) Now Aubrey is in bed, and David and I are just hanging out not doing much.

Maybe next week we'll have a baby! It's so exciting not knowing when Jude will make his arrival but knowing it will be soon! :)