Happy Belated Birthday and Father's Day!

 

Once again, backtracking on posts!  As his birthday came to a close, Brian said to me, "You know, I don't usually like my birthday, but today was a really fun day."  Nothing could have made me happier.  Brian deserved a great day!  The girls were soooooo (I can't put enough o's on that) excited to celebrate.  We had great fun picking out a couple of shirts, making cards, buying Brian his own special dinner of sushi (can't remember what the rest of us ate), and celebrating with candles in ice-cream.  I had tears in my eyes listening to Olivia and Grace sing happy birthday and watching them celebrate daddy successfully blowing out all the candles.  You might say I've been extra sentimental these past 20 weeks!  :)

We weren't around for Father's Day again this year as that's always when the girls and I head up to DuNord, but just like with his birthday, the girls had a great time picking out a present - this time a leaf blower.  Livy is really into making cards right now too because she loves spelling things out, so she jumped on that.  She was extra proud of herself because she remembered how to spell some of the words from when they made me Mother's Day cards.

Thanks for being such a great husband and dad, Brian!  We love you!  Enjoy this mix of some of my favorite daddy pictures - a mix of old and new.

Randomness...

My newest flower creation...got this idea out of a magazine last spring, found a dresser on the side of the road last summer, made Brian put up with a random dresser on our front porch all winter, and planted it this spring.  (I need a new picture, too, because the flowers are even more filled out now.) Ta-da!

Finally, a picture of Brian and me.  Have so many of me with the girls, Brian with the girls, but not many of all of us together (need to work on that) or just the two of us alone.

Favorite sayings...

Grace:  "That's cool, Mommy; that's so cool."

Grace (any time something isn't going her way):  "Oh this is a terrible" or "Oh, it's a terrible day."  Sorry kiddo...not only is terrible not a noun ever but being asked to pick up the dress up clothes you spread all over the floor, isn't the right time to pull out the word terrible.  :)

Olivia and Grace (with one understanding a lot more than the other):  "How do you spell ____."

Olivia and Grace:  Enee, menee, minee, mo
                              Catch a "stiger" (as if that's a real thing) by his toe.
                              If he hollers, let him go
                               Enee, mo, minee.  (Close...but not quite)

Fun pictures...

 Naked "babies" who found some un-used diapers.

Grace, Olivia, and friend Dannika.

Vacation Bible School

Okay - back to catching up on blog entries...

The week after school was out, the girls attended Vacation Bible School.  They both were in the preschool program along with many of Olivia's friends from school and the girls' friend Maggie.  Since Grace and Maggie weren't quite the required age of 4, I volunteered to help out.  Wow - what an experience!  This year was a banner year for preschool participation; we rotated rooms - 10 kids/teacher with 3 rooms and 30 kids total!  I've always thought preschool teachers must be a pretty special lot, but I now have an even greater appreciation for them after experiencing it myself for a whole week!  It's crazy trying to help, keep things moving, and keep everyone focused in a room of 4-5 year olds!

The girls had a really great time overall.  This experience made me feel confident that Liv is definitely ready for kindergarten.  She's such a cooperative little soul - didn't hesitate at all to jump into activities and head to a different room/station than mine.  It was fun to see her embrace being independent despite my presence.  Grace had a little harder time with this but did well overall; it's challenging, I suppose for a 3-year-old to distinguish the difference between mom and teacher.  Regardless, Grace did well with the activities - especially arts/crafts and singing!

The main theme of the week was "God makes us strong."  It was pretty cute to see them yell that out and make "strong" muscles at the same time.  The theme then extended to - the Bible, our family/friends, etc. make us strong too.  At the end of camp, the girls got a CD full of the week's songs, and we've been listening to it ever since.  Even though the songs are starting to drive me a little batty, it's fun to hear their sweet voices singing along and the predictable, "Mom, can we start it over" every time we get in the car!

 Liv enjoying songs the last day.

  

Grace (pink pants) and her friend Maggie (yellow skirt).

 Grace embracing being up front for the preschool song.

It's a BOY!!!

We are happy to announce that we'll be adding a little boy into this family!  We had our ultrasound this morning, and, needless to say, both of us (but especially Brian!) are thrilled to welcome this little man in the relatively near future!

 Profile picture

Proof it's a boy...bottom/legs on left side;

crossed arms in front of face on right side..

Reaching out - arm and hand.

Other ultrasound/appointment updates
     * Baby = 13 ounces
     * Technician's Description = Wiggle worm
          (hence no solid face pictures)
     * Due Date = November 8 (as it was previous)
     * Heartbeat = 150
     * Blood Pressure = Great
     * Weight Gain = About 10.5 pounds

20 Week Bump

Last Friday marked 20 weeks of pregnancy for me - hard to believe!  I've been feeling very well - especially since the headaches I was plagued with a few weeks back have virtually disappeared, as long as I remember to drink enough water, that is!  Baby Boy is certainly an active little one; the ultra sound proved this as does he himself every time I sit or lie down.  I've been able to catch kicks externally for a couple of weeks now, and last night Brian was able to feel them too.

The girls continue to be excited...as of a couple of days ago, both had switched to "hoping for a baby boy because daddy shouldn't be by himself," so they thought it was pretty "cool" (as Grace would say) their wish came true!  Now, they're all about helping me paint the baby's room - but I'm afraid that's definitely going to be a wish that doesn't come true! 

Wow - so excited for all that is to come...preparation, welcoming our little one, and bringing him home and settling in as a family of five!

Olivia's Pre-School Graduation

I did it! Gotta love that smile.

It's absolutely baffling to me to think that little Miss Livy will be headed to kindergarten next year.  In just a few short weeks, Liv will turn five...where has the time gone!

  

This plant was given to us when Olivia was born.

She thinks it's pretty cool that she's bigger!

(Don't tell Grace I killed her plant...!)

Of course, because of her summer birthday, Brian and I went back and forth on whether to send Olivia straight to kindergarten or to a program here in Decorah called T-K (transitional kindergarten) for those who either have summer birthdays or just need a little more time to get ready for kindergarten.  After seeing some continual shyness and hesitation to join in at a ballet class she attended this winter, we had pretty much decided on sending Olivia to T-K but were still attaching a giant ? to that because she seemed to be doing so well in school and, while she's undoubtedly shy, that's a personality trait not something that doing a year of T-K would necessarily change.  Plus, we like our shy and sweet yet somehow wild and silly Liv!

 

Thankfully, pre-school conferences came around and put our minds at ease about Olivia's readiness.  Her teachers, without ever actually telling us what to do, indicated that Olivia is/was doing great and showing all the signs of being ready!  It was fun to see her report card, which showed her growth in many areas from fall, and to hear her teachers' impressions.  Funny too in a way for me because many of the comments said about Olivia match my own kindergarten teacher's comments about me - thanks mom for holding on to all those report cards over the years!  Liv's doing great in the "school" aspect of things - alphabet, numbers, counting, cutting, coloring, etc.  Olivia's teachers agreed that Olivia is definitely shy compared to other kids, but they also said they didn't feel like it was holding her back in any way...compared to last year and even earlier this year, her level of participation had grown in positive ways, and she's really cooperative and a great direction follower (you can imagine how happy her mom especially was to hear this!).  Also, they talked about Olivia's relationships with her peers - once she's comfortable, she doesn't hesitate to chat it up and show her silly self she sometimes hides at first.

With all this new information, we crossed off T-K and signed up Liv for kindergarten at St. Ben's.  She's super excited about it, had a great time at "Meet the Teacher Night," and thought her teacher, Ms. Kuennen seemed really nice - we still talk about her quite frequently, in fact!  It's great that a few of her pre-school buddies from St. Ben's will continue with her into kindergarten too!
 
These pictures are of Olivia's pre-school graduation.  They put on a really nice program of songs in combination with the 3-4 year olds; then, the 4-5 year olds got to do a few special songs and get their own diplomas!  While last year she smiled sweetly but didn't sing a word, this year, Olivia sang along with the rest of her classmates - it's amazing how much growth can happen in such a short time!

I admit that I had a few tears in my eyes through all of this! Bittersweet to see our little girl growing up!

 

Processional into the gym.

 Olivia and her friend Danika (who will continue at St. Ben's too).

 Olivia and friends Stella, Kelby, and Grace.

According to this picture, Olivia's a little squirt too!)

 Olivia and Stella (also continuing at St. Ben's).

Olivia and her teachers - Mrs. Kane (left) and Mrs. Bohr (right).

And Grace, trying to squeeze her little self into every picture!

I'd say child #2 is VERY excited for pre-school!

Mother's Day 2013

 

Nothing like trying to remember a specific day just under a month ago!

Well, most importantly, what I remember from this Mother's Day is that it was quite a nice day!  While it was certainly chilly, it was sunny, and a day that includes sleeping in, special cards from the girls, plus a nap in the afternoon has to be pretty wonderful overall!

Being a mom to two little girls has been a pretty awesome experience, and Mother's Day is a great opportunity to set aside the trivial and reflect on that very fact.  I couldn't be more thankful for our sweet Olivia and Grace, our new little baby on the way, the moms who have helped us become who we are, and all the moms who have served as constant and continuous guides as we embark on the adventure of parenthood.

And...since the very last picture of this post is of me with a little baby bump making it's appearance, I thought I'd give a brief update on how I was feeling at this point.  Mostly, I was feeling very thankful to be feeling better!  Just like with the girls, the first trimester brought some definite nausea.  Weeks 7-12 were a bit of a struggle because I was hungry but didn't feel well, so nothing looked good which made me hungrier which made me feel even worse.  Pretty typical pregnancy stuff overall, I think.  I was lucky not to be too troubled by this during the morning/work-day, but evenings were difficult, and I was glad Brian was able to take over dinner-making duties and get the girls out of the house to give me some quiet time when I was needing it.  First trimester bedtime for me was about 8:30-9, and I could seem to get enough sleep or drink enough water!  We had our first appointment at 10 weeks and heard the baby's heartbeat at 160.  At my next appointment in later May, it was pretty cool to notice how much easier it was to hear the heartbeat because of the growing babe - this time the heartbeat was at 150.   No gut instinct yet on whether it's a boy or a girl...ultrasound date is set for June 24th!

Over the weeks/months, the girls have been pretty fascinated with my growing belly, and Olivia especially likes to know how big the baby is getting - I have a website that I look at that compares the baby's size to food (like a lemon, for example); it provides a nice visual for the girls.  This week, I told Liv that the baby was as long as my hand, and she thought that was really neat.  I had to laugh too when the mom who gave Olivia a ride from school to daycare told me at pre-school graduation that Olivia said to her on the ride one day, "My mom's belly's getting so big she can't even button her pants!"  You just wait, Olivia, for the next four/five months!  :)  I've got to get another picture taken soon, but my bump has become even more obvious as I near the halfway point (18 weeks as of a couple of days ago).  I was pleased to make it through the school year using my bella bands with my work pants and wearing a lot of dresses, but was amazed at how comfortable maternity jeans felt when I finally decided it was time for them!  I'm still wearing a lot of regular shirts, but the time for those will pass by soon enough, I'm sure.  While I've been struggling with headaches quite a bit, overall, I don't have any complaints.  To be honest, I enjoy being pregnant - it's a pretty amazing and special feeling and experience!

Showing a little baby bump = 14.5 weeks

Spring???

 

What a crazy spring this has been...and I don't just mean crazy busy - that should be obvious as I went nearly three months without updating the blog - but what crazy weather!  I took these pictures May 2nd, and I know we were lucky here in Decorah not to have had it worse!

I think 2013 may go down as one of the most mentally challenging springs out there - and that statement goes for this week too.  We are all in need of some sunshine!  I'm very thankful that we've had Bible Camp this week (post on that coming soon) because it has gotten us out of the house despite the rain and cold temperatures.  Since they saw it was filled a couple of weeks ago, the girls have been asking constantly to go to the pool, but I just can't bring myself to do it.  Hard to imagine wearing a swimsuit when I'm comfortable inside in jeans and a sweatshirt!

Tonight after dinner, Grace must have been trying to defy the weather as she went running outside in her panties (yes, you can shake your head at that) to play on the swing-set even though it was 60 degrees outside.  She came in shortly, announced that she was cold, and decided to put on her jammies - the ones she picked for tonight said "Little Wild Child" on them...appropriate, don't you think.  Sigh or laugh...I'm not sure.

Anyways - I don't really have too much to say for this post, but I just wanted to record the pictures as proof of the most chilly, snowy/rainy/sleety, cloudy, late spring I remember!  I really hope the weatherman is right about next week - I'm seriously looking forward to some sun and temperatures in the upper 70's!  (Just think...last summer, upper 70's would have practically been considered cold!)

Dance Class

This spring, Olivia and Grace (and their friend Maggie) participated in a mini-session of Just for Kix dance class.  Their theme was princesses - as you can see, sort of, from the pictures of their spring concert.  The girls absolutely LOVED it!  I'll totally admit that Olivia stood to the side of the gym the first night and just watched as Grace and the rest of the pre-schoolers got busy, but after getting her typical observation time in - she was as good as gold.  My heart smiled to see the girls run into the gym the moment the doors opened and the previous classes kids walked out.  It was super cute to watch them through the windows of the gym and hear them talk about their teacher Juli like she was ultra-special - who wouldn't think that about a teacher who plays princess music, lets you wear ballet outfits, dances with you, and gives you a sticker when you're finished!

These pictures are of their spring concert.  Obviously, they're not the greatest as the overall lighting was pretty poor and we were sitting rather high in the bleachers.  Oh well; most importantly, the girls had a blast, were awfully pound of themselves, were thrilled Auntie Tara got to come and watch them practice one day, loved watching other dancers perform, and thought it was super special that Grandma Linda, Grandpa Mark, and Auntie Thyme got to see their concert and take them out to ice-cream after even though it was super late!

 Walking into the gym...Olivia pink dress third from right 

with Grace next to her in blue.

 Liv not quite so sure about the crowd...Grace ready to go!

Not perfect coordination, but you get the idea!  :)