Visitors!

The last Saturday evening and Sunday in July we had Gary's parents and oma in town!!  The kids enjoyed playing with oma, opa, and great oma!  It was a quick visit, but we squeezed in a couple of dinners out and a quick trip downtown!  Because of the heat, we mostly just toured by car (Gary has become quite the tour guide, he knows what EVERY building is and knows his way around really well!)  We did park and walk to the Air and Space Museum though!  The kids, of course, had a blast!

 It was especially fun having the boys' Great Oma from Canada visit!  We don't get to see her often, but it was so nice watching her interact with the kids! 

Baby #3!!

I'm 14 weeks today, pregnany with baby #3!  Still hard to believe we'll have another baby in February!  We found out at about 4 1/2 weeks... took a pregnancy test only because we wanted to "make sure" since I was just a few days late and had been regular for the past couple of months.  I was still nursing Nathan and we were really just wanting to ease our worry... much to our surprise, the test was positive!  We weren't quite convinced since it was one of those tests with the + and - and the second line wasn't THAT visible... well, I was pretty sure, but Gary was a little bit in denial ;)  So I picked up a digital test on my grocery shopping trip an hour later, took it as soon as I got home, and confirmed that, yes we were pregnant!  We were definitely surprised and a little bit in shock, but never dissappoiinted or upset in the least bit!  It's funny how something that you are not at all planning (at least for another year or two) can still be such a welcome and happy surprise!  And that something you didn't really "want" you instantly fall in love with!

So the last couple of months have been a little rough - lots or morning sickness and exhaustion in the midst of the moving and the start of my job watching 2 extra boys!  I'm 14 weeks today and the nausea has definitely eased up, but is still there... instead of CONSTANT nausea, it's only about 50%  of the time now ;)   My first appointements have gone great though, and they've calculated my due date at Feb 6th!  Alex and this little one will be almost exactly 4 years apart and Nathan will be 21 months older than his little brother or sister!

Alex is pretty excited... he always thanks God for "the new baby" and says he wants "a brother, just like his Nathan".  It's funny how he's adamant he wants a brother again!  When we first told him there was a baby in my belly, he thought it was the funniest thing!  I guess if you think about it from a 3 year old's perspective, it is pretty silly!  Now he comments that my belly is getting bigger all the time.  He went with me to my appointment last week and I was explaining that we were going to listen to the baby... he wanted to know if he was "singing in there??"  haha... too cute :) 

We feel so blessed to have a third baby on the way!  Pray for a healthy pregnancy and baby!!  :) 

15 Months

Nathan is 15 months!  So hard to believe... my little baby is a toddler now and  seems so big! 

*He says "peeaase" alll the time and expects to get it because he's asked so nice :)
*Nathan's learned to hold his own with a big brother and the other 3 year old I babysit around all the time!  He won't let anyone take a toy from him without a fight!  He has also started experimenting with some hitting... not mean hitting but more of an attention getting hitting.  He "hits" when he is frustrated with you or wants you to pay attention to him. 
*This brings me to time-out... we started time outs with our sweet little man a couple of weeks ago.  And as sad as it is when we put him there, it is also so stinking cute.  He feels hurt, but stays there till we go get him and then gets the biggest grin and gives the biggest "I'm sorry" hug! 
*We also started blanket time!  I think it is a FANTASTIC thing to do with toddlers and gives you a great break, too!  Nathan does it for about 15-20 minutes now and doesn't cry *too* much, he's even coming to enjoy it already (after about a week of protesting).  It helps increase focused, independent play, and teaches boundaries, and listening skills.  He's does great obeying and staying on the blanket, but sometimes does stop playing and fusses.  He hasn't gotten off since the first week though!  He gets most upset if he sees me though, otherwise he plays pretty nicely. 
*He talks all the time!  Some of the words he says are: please, thank you, mama, dada, A-ex, Ash (Asher), hi, ball, eat, yes, nigh-nigh, juice, milk, wow, yay, ruff ruff, raaar, bye, up, down, nack (snack), all done, choo choo, cookie, set go!, let's go... and i'm sure some that i'm forgetting
*He also repeats a lot of words if you say them first and tell him to say it.
*He makes sound effects for cars, planes, superheroes, etc. 
*He brings me his shoes all the time!  He LOVES to go outside and go "byebye".  He'll go get his shoes from the closet and bring them to me! 
*He loves his passy... we never had that with Alex past 6 months and I dread the day we take it away!  We mostly keep it for nap and night time, but he is hooked! 
*At bedtime he picks out his own story from his basket of books in his room and brings it to me!  It is the cutest. 
*He folds his hands when we pray or holds hands around the table with the rest of us, and says "Amen"!  so sweet. 
*He LOVES when you try to "get him"... he tries to escape when he knows you want to change him and giggles uncontrollably if you say "I'm gonna get you!" Then he tries to run and his feet and body can't keep up with one another and he always ends up falling if you don't get him first.  So cute!
*He is still napping twice a day... 9:00 for 45 min or an hr and 2:00 for about 1.5 or 2 hrs.  He sleeps with his bear and just loves him! 
*It takes Nathan and Alex a while to fall asleep in the same room becuase they are so busy playing and giggling together... I can't decide if it's a problem or not haha.  They eventually sleep and it's not like one is really keeping the other up... but sometimes it can go on for as long as an hour or more...
*But they sure do love each other and it is so sweet :)
*He still gives wide open mouthed kisses!  love them :) 
*His hair has a red tint to it and curls in the back... he needs a haircut BAD, but I haven't been able to bring myself to do it yet.  There's just something about that first haircut that makes them seem too grown up!
*He had his 15 month appt on Friday and he is 19 lbs 12 oz and has gone from the 14th percentile to the 3rd.  Gary took him to the doctor since I had an OB appt at the same time, but the doctor was giving him a pretty hard time I guess and saying we need to feed him more... not that we don't!  He is just a busy boy and not a huge eater.  Anyway, we're supposed to cut way back on the juice and offer lots of pastas, butter, ice cream, peanut butter, etc.  I feel like we've tried hard, but I guess we'll work on his weight more over the next few months!  His iron levels are up and doing great though, and he's grown 1 inch in height! 

Summer Days!

We have been busy enjoying summer around here!  The last week has been wonderful since being unpacked and feeling more settled :)

 We finally got sand for our sandbox!!  (The sandbox I found at a garage sale last summer RIGHT before finding out we'd be moving to DC)  The kids are loving it! 

 Gary put in a patio for our table in the backyard!  I'll have to post a "finished product" picture soon, but it looks great and makes an awesome temporary solution for us since we obvioulsy can't put in any fixed structures in the rental house.  The yard is pretty much dirt/sticks/rocks other than the patio... which the boys LOVE but we will hopefully be able to grow some grass (despite the shade) and cut down on the mud :)

 We can also have our own kiddie pool now that we are out of the apartment and have our own little yard!  It has been a HUGE hit! 

 Nathan's FAVORITE outside toy is the squirt bottles!  After lots of practice, he's found his own little way of working them and goes around squirting everyone and everything!  He's hilarious too becuase he'll hand me the squirt bottle and say "peeaaase", wanting me to squirt him all over!  He thinks it's so silly!  I love that boy :)

 In the middle of our "pool time" we always take a break for pospscicles or fudgescicles!  Nathan plops right down on his towel like one of the big boys and knows what's coming!  He finishes off every last bite, it's pretty cute :)

It sure has been HOT!  But we've still been spending a lot of time outside!!  The kids LOVE it!  The rest of our time the kids are enjoying the space here!  It is so nice to be able to have toys in their room, a few in the living room, and the majority downstairs in the basement (aka playroom!) 

July

July has been a crazy busy month around here! Hence the lack of posting ;) We are now all moved into our new place though and things are relatively unpacked and settled!! I LOVE that feeling! The whole packing/moving process is a handful with four little ones around during the week!

But look at those four sweet faces :)

Alex was quite the helper "labeling" boxes for me! He LOVED this when we moved last year and I think he loved it even more this year! Amazing what changes he's gone through... this year he wasn't just scribbling on boxes, but writing his name and other "words"!! What a smartie!

This box is labeled "mom"!

The boys helping mommy clean!

And of course this one wanted in on the labeling fun too!

We left Friday evening on July 1st to head to my parents house in DuBois, PA (about a 5 hour drive) to pick up all the stuff that has been in storage there for the last year. Even though they are stationed in GA right now, they made the trip up to help us and visit with us for the night!

We had a campfire, the boys loved roasting marshmellows and playing in the yard!

Grandpa bought some fireworks that Alex and Gary LOVED!!!! Anyone that knows Gary knows that fireworks are a huge love of his ;) Particularily setting them off himself...

Saturday we got up early to start loading the truck up! We got a 22ft truck this year (last year we moved our stuff with a 26ft truck and it was a VERY tight fit... but we had two trips this year and figured this would be plenty big enough!)

Alex was a HUGE helper!!

He absolutely loved the truck! ( In fact, every time he prays the first thing he STILL says is "thank you for the yellow moving truck!" LOL)

We just kept loading and loading though (not super tightly like last year...), and we pretty much packed the entire truck! Can't believe how much stuff we had there... mostly furniture and boxes of school stuff from teaching.

After loading everything up we went on a quick boat ride on the lake before we hit the road!

The kids both thought it went a bit fast, but all in all enjoyed grandpa's boat!

We left Saturday after lunch to head back to DC. Gary's family met up with us at the new townhouse (twice the size of our apartment - 3 bedrooms, with a large basement for a playroom!) We unloaded the truck Saturday night, then went back to our apartment to relax before another big day! Sunday we got up early and loaded up the apartment!

Here are our helpers in the truck! We loaded everything up by lunchtime, then headed to lunch, then the townhouse to unload! We are so appreciative of all the help we had! We couldn't have done it without our families and are so grateful for all of their help!!! Monday my parents came through on their way back to GA to help move things around, clean, etc. And I've been unpacking little by little ever since. Two weeks after the move, it's all pretty much unpacked and things are looking pretty good! We are absolutely loving the space, and although Nathan has been a little clingy, the kids are transitioning well! :)

We had a weekend of celebration our first weekend in the new house! Our anniversary and Gary's birthday happen to fall just 2 days apart (July 8th and 10th). Friday the 8th Gary made an AMAZING 5 year anniversary dinner for us to celebrate as a family. Can't believe all that has happened in the last five years, it's been crazy but absolutely wonderful! Saturday some friends of ours watched the boys and we spent the evening going on dinner and movie date! (Transformers 3 in IMAX 3-D... yes, we went for the romantic evening - ha!) We really did have a great time though - I really treasure those kid-free dates with my hubby! :) Then Sunday was Gary's birthday... although it was a busy day being in the new home, we managed to spend time going to dinner and shopping for house stuff together as a family! Then we came back for cheesecake before bed! It was a great weekend!

And I can't end the post without mentioning that this little man started walking just before all of that excitement! After standing for a few moments on his own for about a month and just being afraid to take that first step, he finally started taking 3-4 steps at a time at 13 months and 1 week... then after about a week of a few steps at a time, he began fully walking at 13 1/2 months :) I love the wobbly little toddler walk!!

My little bike rider!

We got Alex a two-wheeler (with training wheels) about two weeks ago now! He LOVES it and is doing awesome with the pedaling! :)

Pool Days!

The pool opened Memorial Day weekend! We've been spending a lot of time there ever since :) The kids LOVE it!!


Alex's favorite part is runing through the fountains in the kiddie area!

Nathan likes to walk around the edge of the kiddie area! He will only walk left for some reason though! haha

The kids are always worn out after a trip to the pool!

Popsicles after swimming, yumm!

Nathan enjoys them more than Alex! He can eat 2/3 of it every time! The only time he hasn't been a fan was when we weren't outside right before and he wasn't particularily hot... I guess it was too cold for him that time!

Waiting for daddy to finish grilling so we can eat!

Memorial Day picnic and pool trip!!

Nathan enjoying every bite of his hot dog!

Splashing!

Out swimming in the deep end with daddy! He loves this!

I admit it took some bribing to get Alex to venture out with daddy, but after the first time he warmed up and loves it now! The next step is to see if I can get him to wear swimmies (would make it easier when I take all four of the kids on babysitting days! Right now the big boys have to stay in the kiddie area)