Things and Stuff

The Ray household has been buzzing with lots of activity lately but somehow it seems that nothing is really getting done. We have so many things started or in progress but I can't seem to get them done. Luckily my husband is working very hard to try to get his projects done because if things were left up to me we would be in this predicament forever.

Here is a little list of what we have going. I have started getting Ellie's room ready for her but I cant finish because I have no desire to sew the curtains right now and I can't get the rest of Walter's toys out of the room because the garage is too full. The garage is too full because we have all of the stuff for the bathroom remodel in the garage is the place where I want to put Little Walter's tool bench. The bathroom remodel isn't done because some of the additions to our house were done by crazy people so everything has to be done from scratch or fixed before we can move forward. We still haven't gotten all of the Christmas stuff down to the basement because 1)the bathroom remodel takes all of the free time so we there is no time left to get a dozen loads of stuff to the basement and 2) we got all of the lights and decorations packed up but somehow forgot the giant ornaments hanging on the elm tree out front and they need to be taken down at some point but I am not exactly in top ladder climbing form. The baby stuff hasn't come up from the basement yet and gotten clean because there is just no room for it right now. With the boxes of bathroom stuff and the boxes of Christmas stuff I am a little low on storage space and I also have a pile of food about 6' long against the wall in my front room because it is for Girl's camp and no one can figure out a place to store it where it won't get ruined by heat or rodents. I am also still working on cooking this baby because, like Little Walter, she seems perfectly content with living in her current habitat FOREVER.

On that note, let me update you the pregnancy. I am still very pregnant. Painfully pregnant at times. I had a doctor's appointment today and I have made no progress. For some reason I think my body is missing whatever it is that makes babies want to leave. I promise I am trying my best not to be hospitable but it just isn't working.
I am currently working with little Walter on his shapes, colors, numbers and alphabet. The numbers and alphabet are doing pretty well. The colors are okay and the shapes could definitely use some help but we are working on it. His latest news is that he had a little mishap in the bathtub last night and bit through his lip. It was terribly traumatizing for me. I am sure it was bad for him too, but I was in a little bit of shock. It bled so badly and now it is so swollen it makes me hurt to look at it. I will include a picture at the end of the post.

Big Walter has discovered a new hobby. He has discovered ways to alter his nerf guns to make them shoot farther/harder. It is so funny to see the little boy in him come out. I have no problem with him altering his gun but I really wish he wouldn't have made Little Walter's gun shoot harder. The kid is going to lose an eye one of these days. My only real request is that he not try to make the super soaker flame thrower that he saw on youtube. There have to be limits.


A cute family photo from Christmas.

The boy in front of the piles of leaves that are another unfinished project. I rakes them but the darn green trash can isn't big enough to hold them all so it will take us a few tries to get rid of them all.

This is Little Walter's favorite new activity. Running. The kid would run forever if we let him. I would love to go out with him more but I am not in the physical state to keep up with him all that well these days.

The injury to his lip. I think it looks worse in person but this picture is pretty gross. I really hope it heals soon without bothering him too much.

I love this man for so many reasons, not the least of which is how darn photogenic he is.

That's all for now, folks.

'Tis the Season

Well, now that the Christmas season is over it is now time for the sickness season. Ugh. Coughs, sinus problems, ear aches, we have them. I hope this is a short lived season because I am really tired.

The Great Name Debate

Well, it has taken us 7.5 months but we think we might have picked out a name. It is weird to refer to the baby using a name since I have gotten so used to referring to her as "the baby", "baby sister", "little girl", etc. Now, we do reserve the right to change our minds because we like being indecisive it seems, but we actually both feel really good about this name. And the name is......drum roll, please......Eliza. Full name being Eliza (Ellie) DeLon Ray.
I have liked Eliza for a long time (since high school, maybe) and I think it goes well with Walter as they are both more classic names. The middle name is my grandfather's, mother's and my middle name. I know it is odd, but it's a family name. So, there you have it.
Oh, and if you hate the name could you refrain from letting me know. That would be great. : )

Quick Baby Update

I just thought I would let you all know that she is still a she. We weren't able to confirm last time because she was sitting breech though they were fairly certain that it was a girl. This time she was still sitting breech but after a little pushing and shoving we were able to get a good picture that confirms what we have been suspecting.
Like I said, she is still breech but they said that there are still a few weeks for her to turn before they will get concerned. Other than that everything is marvelous. She is measuring 32weeks 3day and I am 32weeks 2day according to my due date so we are right on. They also said she is about 4lbs. though that could be totally wrong since ultrasounds aren't the most accurate when it comes to weight but I will take it.

Hey There

Well, I haven't updated in approximately, um, forever. Things have been going well. Little Walter keeps me VERY busy. Usually I will read other people's blogs to keep updated on everything going on but just don't write. Well recently he has kept me so busy (plus I am quite pregnant and quite tired these days) that I haven't even read any other blogs. So, I really hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving and Christmas because I haven't read in a while.
Little Walter had a great Christmas. There are way too many toys in our house at this point in time but he is thrilled to have so much to play with. My parents came for the few days before Christmas and it was nice to have the opportunity for the little guy to see them at both Thanksgiving and Christmas this year.
I don't really know what else to tell you about in regards to Little Walter so if you have any questions, just ask.
Big Walter is still doing the same things he usually does but now he is working on a massive bathroom remodel in his free time. Ha ha, free time. Yeah, like he gets a lot of that. We are working on the master bathroom and it is quite a project. I would love to help him but construction work isn't really my thing. I think I would be more in the way than anything else. I do plan to help when it comes to the finish work so I will feel better about my contribution at that time. I took some pictures of the before and will get some pictures of the after so that we will always be able to appreciate the work that he has done.
I am still pregnant. I didn't start to look pregnant until this last month. I am hoping that will mean that this baby is small but I am not holding my breath. I will have another ultrasound on Monday to make sure everything is where is should be and I am hoping they will be able to tell me gender for sure this time. During the last ultrasound the baby was sitting breech so we could get 100% but the tech said she is fairly certain it is a girl. This is what I thought all along so I am pretty confident that it is a she but I would like the ultrasound to tell me for sure before I buy too many dresses and pink things. The rest of the pregnancy is going as planned. Starting to get uncomfortable, eating like crazy, ready for it to be over. You know, the usual. If you have anymore questions about the pregnancy, me, bathroom remodel, Big Walter, or me just ask those as well. I might even answer.

Oh, and no, we do not know what we are going to name the baby. I can't decide for the life of me.

And here are some pics.
Family Christmas Pic:

At Hart Park feeding ducks:

Halloween:

Just Do It

GO VOTE!!!

Oh, and don't forget...YES ON 8!!!

That is the most important thing going on today so I will update you on everything else later.

The Best in the West

I figured that I was doing such an awesome job of posting (this makes 6 posts this week) that I should keep going. So, you lucky readers will get to hear about our trip to the fair.
On Monday, Walter, Bradon, Little Walter and I all headed to the great Kern County Fair. In case anyone is wondering what the title of this blog means, it is the theme of the fair this year. I don't necessarily agree that it is the greatest fair in the west but we had a good time none the less.
We started a tradition a few years back of going to the fair for family home evening. It is much less crowded on Monday night so the guys don't have to wait in long lines to get their massive curly chili cheese fry (a.k.a. a heart attack on a plate). We decided to split our eating up this year by visiting various kid attractions. The main reason we go to the fair is the food but we decided that we over did it last year so we enacted a new routine to help avoid this problem.
We started with a philly cheesesteak sandwich for Walter and Bradon. That firemens' booth makes a mean cheesesteak. We then moved to the animals. There are way too many animals for my liking so we stuck to the outskirts to avoid the smell and my son's need to touch EVERY SINGLE ANIMAL. After animals we hit up the funnel cake stand, then the pedal tractors/fake cow you can milk/old farm stuff that you can make music with section, then curly fries with chili and cheese thing, then the other kiddie tents with reptiles and music, then the kids karaoke stage and lastly, my amazing fair cinnamon roll. I wait all year for this thing. mmmmmm.



I think my favorite part of the fair was the karaoke stage. It was for kids 7 and under and little Walter had a blast. He was hesitant to get up at first until he heard two little boys sing the ABCs. Though I do sing the ABCs to him he doesn't really know them yet. He has a few favorite letters that he likes to repeat but on Monday night there was no telling him that he didn't know the song. Not only did he get on the stage in front of everyone to sing it but he got up multiple times and sang with conviction. It was really cute. Here are a few video of the ABCs and one if his drum solo.




This picture is just for Bradon. I convinced him to take a picture milking the cow because it would be cool to have it on the internet. I don't know if it is cool. but it is on the internet.