Life Update!

Well, I guess it's about time I update about life! Can't believe it's been over 3 weeks since my last post, and soo much has happened in the Friske house! We had a wonderful Easter with my family (I was hoping to post pictures of Easter on my next blog entry... but am still trying to figure out how to get pics off of my dad's camera - I left mine in Chicago when we visited, oops!) Alex enjoyed all of the Easter festivities though - dying eggs, egg hunting, Easter baskets, lots of treats, and just visiting with family!

After spring break, I went back to school for 3 more weeks... and now I'm DONE!!! It felt like a loong 3 weeks at school and was so tiring, but I am so happy to be at home and relaxing now. We spent the weekends doing lots of "nesting" things and preparing for our little guy - carpet cleaning, nursery organizing, furniture rearranging, and finishing up some grad class assignments so that everything is done and I don't have to worry about any of that after the baby comes! I feel pretty prepared and am am mostly just relaxing now and trying to keep things semi-clean and ready :) Alex got sick pretty much right after school was done for me - it hit him Saturday evening and he's finally starting to feel better today. I'm just glad that it's before the baby comes!

I think we've decided on a name for our little one! Well, kind of... we are still debating the shorter or longer version. Nathan or Nathaniel Karl Friske is our plan right now (unless we have some kind of last minute change of mind haha). Nathan means gift from God and Karl is Gary's middle name and was his grandpa's name. If we go with Nathaniel, we'll call him Nathan most of the time... we were thinking with the longer name Alexander it might go well... and I really like the sound of it... although Gary is leaning a little more toward just Nathan right now, so we will see!

So now we're just playing the waiting game! My doctors have all still predicted that Nathan will be here early - I think they mainly think that because Alex was 10 days early. I have been 1.5 cm dialated for 2 weeks now... and yesterday they said I was 2 cm. He said he hoped to see me before my next appt on Wed. next week, but if not we'll talk about how long they'd want to wait before inducing me. Gary is so ready for the baby to make his appearance! He's been asking me several times a day if I have any labor signs and thinks every day is "the day". On the other hand, I'm enjoying a few days off to relax and rest up and spend time with Alex. (I'm loving the fact that I can stay in bed until 7 and take a daily nap!!!) I think by next week, I will be ready for Nathan's arrival though! I am starting to feel a little anxious and just wondering what will happen this time - last time was so different since my water broke before contractions started at all. I was induced with Alex, so I feel like I don't know what to expect this time!

We are also getting nervous about how Alex will do with the arrival of his little brother! He has been especially clingy to mommy the past few weeks and more whiny than usual. I think he senses that there are changes coming! He knows he's having a brother of course, but I think that we've been talking about it so long now that it doesn't feel like it's real to him. I think he's definitely going to have some jealousy and it will be tough not to have all of mommy's attention... we did get him a few new things to pull out when the baby comes and hope to make it as easy of a transition as possible - we'll see! I think two might be a tough age since they are so much in the "mine", egocentric phase! His personality is also very affectionate and he loves to snuggle all of the time - I think that might be tough with us holding the baby and him wanting to be held too.

Well, Alex is asking if I'm done with my "e-mails" and if we can go outside, so I guess I'm done for now! :)

Spring is officially here!

Spring break has been great! I can't believe how fast it has gone - it is already Friday! Here are some highlights from the week:

*A trip to Chicago to visit great college friends!! And although Alex was very off schedule and had several "terrible two" moments, we had a great time! We enjoyed the Shedd Aquarium (where Alex loved to "touch" the fish through the glass and claimed that they were "my fish!"), Chicago style pizza, games, and wonderful company!!

*Ice cream date with Alex on one of the beautiful days we had! And he ate every single bite... I think we were there at least 45 minutes... I kept asking if he was all done and he'd just grin and say "nooo..." and keep on going! (This was a big change from last summer when he thought ice cream was too cold and wouldn't eat more than 2 bites or so)

*Park time (although the normally 10 minute walk there was a MUCH different experience being 7 1/2 months pregnant! haha!) - And Alex overcame his long time fear of slides... he must have gone down 15 times by the end of our trip!

*Shopping for spring clothes for my boys! (Well mostly for Alex since the new little guy has TONS of clothes already!)

*Nursery organizing... with the help of Alex who referred to it as the "baby's room" and wanted so badly to help fold and put away and sort clothes! Such a big helper!

*Closet cleaning... got to clean out two closets :) not as much organizing as I'd hoped, but pretty good for only having a few free days!

*Flip flops, capris, short sleeves, lots of outside time, beautiful weather!

*Convincing Alex (well, bribing him actually!) to wear sandals (he was very concerned that he had no socks on!) and shorts!

*Watching Alex enjoy riding his bike and car and collect sticks, rocks, and grass from around the yard. He just LOVES being outside!

*Grilling out with my boys and eating outside on the deck!

*Lunch date in the middle of the week with Gary... and getting to see his office and meet his co-workers!

*Mid-day naps (every day except one this week :) )

*Donut and "choo choo" date with Alex (his FAVORITE thing to do with mommy I think... dunkin' donuts followed by barnes and noble to play with the train table and read books - this was something we did on Saturday mornings together while Gary was unemployed to give him a little bit of time to himself!)

It has been a busy, fun-filled, and productive week! I can't believe how fast it has gone by... although I'm not dreading going back tooooo much since I know I only have 3 weeks until maternity leave starts. Speaking of the baby, my doctor was convinced at my appointment this week that I will be early - we will see! I really don't know what she is basing this theory off of, but she seemed pretty sure! She even had me move my pre-registration appointment up a week and a half just to make sure the baby doesn't come before my appointment.

Well, I better run, my family will be here soon to celebrate Easter weekend at our house! So excited to see them all again!! :)

lots of snuggles!

Alex came down with the stomach bug this past Thursday night... first time he has been sick since before Gary's time at home... 4 1/2 months ago was his last time sick! I think that was our longest stretch ever. I guess I shouldn't have spoken so soon - just that afternoon at daycare his teacher and I were talking about how her little one had been sick a lot and I mentioned that Gary and I had taken bets on how long till back in daycare before Alex would get sick. I told her I guess I lost the bet because my guess was his second week back (Gary guessed it would be after 3 weeks, probably over spring break...) So anyway, I guess I spoke too soon because he woke up throwing up Thursday night :(

It is so hard to watch a sick toddler... he was up from 11:30-4:30 throwing up every 10-20 minutes, it was awful! We just snuggled on the couch all night and watched a couple of movies. He would dose off every now and then but then wake up within 20 minutes sick again. Poor thing! Finally he fell asleep about 4:30 though and that was it for getting sick. I took Friday off and we spent the day snuggling, sleeping, and watching movies together. As much as I hate for him to be sick, there is something about being able to hold him and comfort him and spend a whole day just snuggling!

Alex is such a snuggler anyway... he is a very affectionate little boy and I love it :) He gives big, long hugs and will smother you with kisses! I think that will be hard for when the baby comes for him - seeing another little one snuggling with mommy and daddy. Of course we will do our best to show him there is plenty of love and plenty of snuggles to go around :)

I'm thinking Alex may be an early little reader... he is so into his letters and it is so cute! I don't feel like we've pushed it or quizzed him or anything, he just really loves letters and his little mind is soaking everything up! He has foam letters in the bath, a letter puzzle, magnetic letters for the fridge, and lots of letter books that he enjoys. (You can tell I'm a K/first grade teacher! haha.) He also loves "The Letter Factory" movie he got for christmas and probably watches it once a week or so. His favorite TV shows have been "Super Why" (or just "why" as he calls it) that revolves around letters/sounds and "Word World" (or "words" as he calls it). Anyway, he got some letter flashcards from Santa in his stocking back at Christmas time and we hadn't really gotten them out yet. He saw them in the closet a couple of weeks ago and asked to play with them, so I went ahead and took out just a few of the ones that he knows and a couple of others for him to play with. He asks to "play cards" and we'll go through them together or he'll just line them up and say them to himself. I decided to get them all out when he asked for more cards yesterday just for fun and to see which ones he knows. I went through the whole stack of 26 (capital and lowercase on the same card) and he knew 17 letters!!! I was very surprised and so proud! What a smart little boy! He went from knowing 7 to 17 in just a couple of weeks! My goal was that he'd know his letters by kindergarten, but it looks like he'll know them before he's 2 1/2!

busy, tired, and counting down!

A lot has been going on for us these past couple of weeks! Gary started his new job and really seems to be enjoying it so far! Alex is back in daycare and is doing great... I really think he's missed being with other kids. He has been excited to go each day and we haven't had any tears yet, which is far better than I had hoped for! We are settling into a pretty good routine at home as well.

My parents and sisters were in town two weekends ago to visit and we had a great time! We took them to IKEA and we all went out to lunch... we spent most of the rest of the weekend relaxing and catching up! They will all be back again over Easter :)

This past weekend we took Alex to the circus - it was priceless to see his big eyes as he watched the show and so fun to see him clap and cheer for the different acts. He was in awe! His favorite thing to watch was definitely the animals - elephants, horses, tigers, and dogs!

I'm starting to feel really tired at this point - I'm sooo ready for spring break in two weeks and then maternity leave to start three weeks after that. It still seems like a long time though, the days and weeks are just dragging! It's not even that I'm necessarily ready to have the baby yet, I'm just ready to be done with school. It's definitely been a tough year with my class and my patience is pretty much gone at this point. It is so exhausting trying to deal with angry, emotional, and often mean and disrespectful kids all day while also trying to actually teach them something. And of course it isn't the whole class, but 6 kids or so that really make it tough for the rest of us to enjoy our days together. Anyway, keep praying for my energy and patience as I make it through 4.5 more weeks with this group of kids!

But, I actually love being pregnant! Each time I feel those little baby kicks and movements, I am just so amazed at the miracle of pregnancy! Other than tired, I'm feeling overly hungry all the time and very obsessed with food haha. I literally go to bed thinking about what I'm going to eat for breakfast the next morning! My back is really bothering me this pregnancy too. It bothered me last time, but this time it seems worse. Maybe it's how the little guy is laying or something?

And for a few favorite 2 year old sayings from these past few days:

• "onamark, set, go!" (on your mark, get set, go!)
• "uv ooo mama" (love you mama) - a favorite saying that will never get old :)
• "why?" and "but why?"- this is a new one... only within the past 3 days or so... I have a feeling we are entering a why? stage! It's cute for now, but we'll see in a couple more days ;) Normally right now it's used when we ask him to do something that he isn't so sure he wants to do!

Answered Prayer!!!

We are so excited - Gary accepted a job today at Guardian Savings Bank as a senior accountant!!! Praise God!!!!! Just to brag about my hubby a little, he was selected from over 300 applicants after three rounds of interviews! He is scheduled to start this coming Monday - it has all happened so quick! We are so thankful for this wonderful blessing and good timing! He will have the chance to get settled in his new position and be in a good routine before our baby boy is here in 10 weeks or so... and it's just such a relief to know before our new little one arrives that Gary has a job!

I took Alex to visit daycare today and he is all signed up and ready to start back up at the same place he went before- I'm a little nervous about how he'll adjust having been home with his daddy for over four months. He really doesn't have much time there though - three weeks till spring break (woohoo!) then three weeks after that until my maternity leave begins. There will be a lot of transitions for our little guy within the next few months!

Thank you all so much for your prayers, support, and encouragement these past months - God is so good to have put so many great people in our lives to love and support us - as well as to help us grow and learn - through these few months of unknown. We have learned so much about God's sovereignty and trusting in Him. In addition, I am so thankful for this time of really learning about God's will - and knowing that His will for our lives is to strive to glorify Him in all that we do - and if we do that, we really can't go wrong!

Please continue to pray for our family as we go through many transitions over the next few months :)

Current Happenings

We've had a big two year old for a little over a month now! I can't believe how big Alex is getting and what a little boy he is turning into. Here are some of the things that he is currently doing/saying:

• "MINE!" (not a mommy and daddy favorite ;) )
• "ready... GO!"
• "WOOHOO!" (can be said for even the littlest amount of excitement... and with both arms thrown up in the air)
• He is VERY into letters... he likes to play "cards" with letter flashcards, watch TV shows with letters, play letters on the fridge, and points them out on everything! He now knows: A, M, R, T, Z, Q, O and sometimes K and S. I know, it is a very random assortment!
• "One... two... tree!" (before running across a room, back and forth)
• Says his own prayers... not in full sentences or anything, but he now likes to say the words. (Mommy and daddy are usually second on the list of "thank yous" after his little buddy Jack!)
• Enjoys choo choos (and even tries to build his own tracks now), cars, and trucks - he is all boy!
• Does great sleeping in his "big boy bed"... still doing great with staying in bed until he gets permission to get up, which is wonderful!
• "no way!" (another way over-used phrase... often involving a pointing finger... the two year old attitude is coming out!)
• "come here" and "up please" and "play please" to get mommy and daddy's attention to play!
• Gives kisses to mommy's belly and will tell you his baby brother is in there... he loves babies right now - we'll see if that is still true in a couple of months ;)
• Books! Alex can sit and read books for a very long time for a two year old... and he loves going to the library and bookstore with mommy! I hope this love of reading lasts a long time!
• Playing with his daddy - they have definitely been able to bond and enjoy lots of guy play time together with Gary being out of work... he sure does love his daddy! It is so sweet to watch them together... how blessed I am :)

Ok, so I could probably go on forever, but since those are the first things that come to mind, I'm sure they are the most important to remember! :)

The pregnancy is still going great! Of course the tiredness is hitting me more and more (I am now 30 weeks!) and my back bothers me and I have to pee allll the time - but that is all normal of course. This little guy is quite the mover! He doesn't just kick the way that Alex did. His whole body moves, and it moves a lot. It is crazy to feel and to watch... not sure what that means for once he is born, haha. We still haven't settled on a name for sure. Our top name is still Nathan (Nate for short), but we haven't completely decided yet. I feel like things have been so busy this time and we've had a lot of other stuff going on that this pregnancy has taken more of a backseat... Gary was already saying the other day that he doesn't think this baby is getting the same attention as the first! I guess we just feel like things are pretty much ready since we've already done it once. Probably over spring break in a few weeks I'll make sure the nursery is together and go through some more of the clothes and stuff.

Well, anyway, I feel like I'm starting to ramble! Keep praying for a healthy baby and the current job situation!

Let's give this blogging thing a try!

So I've been thinking about starting a blog for a while... mostly just to capture sweet memories in the lives of my boys! I want to be able to go back and remember all of the wonderful and silly things that they do and say and have found from reading other blogs that this might be the way for me to journal about day to day events! I love scrapbooking, but am so behind at this point that maybe this will help me remember things for when I finally get around to scrapbooking past Alex's first six months ;).

So anyway, happy reading!