Pate's Full Circle: Been hanging around

I have once again fallen into a blogging lethargy. I love reading friends blogs, but my own laziness has kept me from updating on anything going on in our lives. The cliff notes version can most aptly be summed up by a byline I recently read in the local newspaper: "Dang it's hot." But the plus side is that it is starting to get cooler! I mean, today is only 97 degrees! And I finally convinced Eric is was "late enough" in the year to buy some yummy fall scents from Bath and Body Works for the house.

Plus, the end of this week marks my foray into my third trimester. Pregnancy is starting to get to the uncomfortable point. She likes to kick me at all hours of the night, lest I forget her presence. We also picked a name for the baby: Ansley Claire Pate. We have had a lot of questions on how to pronounce the name. It sounds like Anns-Lee. With Liam we decided to wait until he was born to tell people his name. I had heard horror stories from people on sharing their child's name only to be told how the name reminded them of someone they hate or rhymed it with a funny word, or told that they should consider another name, etc. But this time around I am just choosing to ignore any comments that come our way. We love the name because to us it sounds sweet.

I am still feeling pretty good, although this time around I have had a lot more numbness in my hands and feet due to circulation. I am also at the point where I will start going every two weeks to see my doctor. It seemed really soon to start seeing her this frequently, but my doctor assured me it was how often she saw me during my first pregnancy. And because I love my doctor, I don't mind too much. Especially because her waiting room is filled with great magazines like People and Martha Stewart Living. I am fairly easy to please.

Two weekends ago I went on a girls weekend with the same gals I went to Florida with. It was a ton of fun, but I forgot to bring my camera so I have very little to show for it. My friend, Sasha, recently built a new house in Prosper so we all got together to enjoy the pool, long dinners, wine (for them of course - caffeine free root beer for me), and good conversation. It is a reminder of how important friendships can be in one's life and how easy it is to get so wrapped up in work and family life that you don't take time to foster relationships.

When I returned at the end of the weekend, Eric and I set out for the annual Central Market Hatch Green Chile Festival! We bought our usual bushel of roasted hot green chile and spent a long evening peeling, sectioning off and freezing our green treasure. Needless to say, we have since enjoyed Albuquerque Turkey sandwiches (roasted bell peppers, onions, green chile, smoked turkey and provolone on sourdough bread), green chile pizza at our first hosted little pool party with college friends, huevos rancheros, breakfast burritos and so forth.

For Labor Day weekend we set out to visit Ryan, Jolyn and the kids in Wichita. The last time we were all together was for Liam's birthday so it was a great chance to reconnect.

This picture pretty much sums up the terrible twos in our household! He actually did great on the 6 hour road trip, but we are definitely having to work with him on being so willful!

Wichita actually had a cold front while we were in town so the days were in the lower 80s and the evening actually feel into the 60s. Ah Nirvana! Liam slept in a big boy bed which was a relief since we will soon have to buy him one. We had a nice relaxing weekend which included brunch at the yummiest restaurant "Ya-Ya's", playtime at a great city park and a trip to their local arboretum. And lots of eating. All the Pate's can really throw down when it comes to good eating.

Liam loves his cousins and the feeling is mutual. Their relationship is unlike so many other relationships between younger and older kids. They want him around, encourage him to join in their games and enjoy showing him the ropes on the things they know. Jolyn and Ryan have done an amazing job in raising their kids and I often ask Jo for her guidance on raising Liam.