Jonathan and I made a pact over two years ago when we were pregnant with Adaya. I really wanted to find out the sex. He did not. I mean REALLY did not. So, we compromised by me finding out and then keeping it a secret from everyone. Yup, everyone.
Well, I was able to do it then and I can do it now! So, you will find out if we're having our third girl or first boy next March.
The important thing is that he/she is very healthy, growing well and squirming all over the place ALL THE TIME! Actually, I found out that with this baby the placenta is toward my back so I feel every kick, every flip and every tremble magnified! Both Chloe and Adaya's placenta were toward my front so it acted like a buffer, but not now!
In other news, fall has been absolutely beautiful this year. An abundance from our garden, now either canned in our pantry or frozen in our freezers, peaceful frosty mornings and 82 pounds of deer meat from Jonathan's successful hunt! Finally, after three years of no luck, Jonathan shot a 3x4 point buck on the last day of the season last Friday! He was so happy! What a lucky man he is...brand new Ford Truck and another trophy pair of antlers!
Artisans in the Grove wrapped up our summer market season in October with a ton of rain...kind of like how we started in June and we just had our first Holiday Market of the season last week...24 vendors and a great turnout for a cold and wet Wednesday night! We are already sold out for our December market with 25 vendors and a waitlist of another 6! And there are still 3 more weeks left!
It was a lot of work, but well worth it and I feel blessed to be a part of this new endeavor. Unfortunately it doesn't leave me with a lot of free time like I used to have. Between teaching Chloe and Emma DuPont homeschool preschool twice a week, Chloe's Art Smart on Tuesdays and Mom's Group on Thursdays, I hardly feel like I am home anymore. So starts having school-age children, I guess!
Homeschooling has gone terrifically! Ive been using a combination of a couple different curriculum and adding in a bit of my own creativity as well. And I have to say I am really enjoying it as well! Who knew?! But don't think that means I want to do this for the rest of their educations. I feel pretty confident in preschool and perhaps kindergarten, but after that, I think I will leave it to the professionals!
Art Smart has been great for all of us, too. Chloe gets good experience of learning from another teacher, meeting new kids and she looks like such a cute little artist when I pick her up and she's covered in paint! Those three hours a week have been great for me and Adaya as well and I'm enjoying having one-on-one time with my "middle child." Since it's all the way in Beaverton we usually run errands, grab lunch and just spend quality time together. It reminds me how much I cherished this age with Chloe before the horrific terrible two-and-a-halfs and threes came! I am thankful I get a couple more months with her at this fun age before her little sibling arrives.
Writing-wise, I finished my third draft of the book at a whopping 101 pages, added a dedication, preface and afterword before sending it out to my third wave of readers: Kaylin, Ken and Heather and Eric. I decided to one more read-through while awaiting their opinions and boy am I glad I did! I've caught a ton of typos! I've also been working on a cover, adding a little scrapbook of pictures in the back and doing a little research on publishers. If all goes well, my deadline goal is the first of the year to begin seriously submitting it as a manuscript. If I cannot get a publisher, I will look more into self-publishing. Either way, I hope to have it published and marketed by March, so I can concentrate on my newest job: mom of three! But, all in God's hands and I trust His infinite wisdom and timing.
