Night Out

I went out with a friend last night without Pete. It was my first time doing something without Pete since our date night 20 days ago, besides when I sleep of course. I don't mind being with my son at all but I have to say it was nice to eat a meal without interruption and not be distracted by his needs and just concentrate on mine. And my needs apparently were to eat and talk. We went to this amazing restaurant on the river in Lowell. I had the best sandwich I have ever had and a wonderful blackberry iced tea. We walked around town a bit then got some ice cream at this little shop with a beautiful garden in back. I came home with a very full and happy tummy. My belly button hurt I had eaten so much. We had a great time catching up on what is going on in our lives and I loved talking girl stuff, not baby stuff. I was enjoying my time out so much I didn't realize it was almost tip-off time. I got home a few minutes after the Lakers game started and finished off my great night watching my team kick some butt.

Here are some pictures from my fun night out. Isnt' this a pretty garden for an ice-cream place?And of course I had to show off my big belly!

9

Abby turned 9 today. Overall she is doing really well except P. and I have noticed lately she is getting a little slow and stiff. She may not be at the top of my priority list anymore but I still love that dog, a lot. I think she is beautiful and at the end of the day we have spent 9 wonderful years together. She is a good dog. She has her moments and her very annoying bad behaviors but she is a good dog.

We didn't have any hot dogs this year so they got cheese cubes. They didn't mind. We sang happy birthday and Pete fed them their treats. Here is a picture. Happy birthday Pooper.

29 Weeks

29 weeks yesterday! Time is starting to fly by. Katie will be home in a few weeks and I expect June and July to go even faster. Can you believe it is already June? It doesn't feel like it at all, probably because the weather has been so cool here this spring. I am dying for some hot weather.

As far as I can tell our baby girl is doing well. Still moving around like crazy. She feels huge already. Sometimes I can feel a foot down by my right hip and a hand up in my left ribs at the same time. I am just guessing that's what those parts are but I am not quite sure what exactly I am feeling. In general I would say this pregnancy is harder than Pete's. The morning sickness was stronger and longer. There are more annoying symptoms such as heartburn, exhaustion and constipation and I am SO much more uncomfortable. Breathing is a constant struggle, especially after I eat. My pelvis aches and sometimes sharp pains shoot through my groin. There is a lot of pressure and I feel like I spend most of my time trying to hold her in so she doesn't fall out. My fingers are swollen so much that I had to take my rings off a few weeks ago. I had no problems with swelling with Pete. I am almost to the weight I was when I had Pete and I still have 11 weeks to go. If I gain on schedule that is another 11 pounds, if I am lucky. A lot of the clothes I wore at the end of my last pregnancy don't fit me now. It's hard to swallow. But I know it is part of being pregnant and it's more than worth it in the end. I would never chose to feel better but not be pregnant. I am not one of those women who loves being pregnant. I admit it. But that doesn't mean I don't find joy in the whole experience. I know I am blessed to be able to have children of my own and the excitement of having another child is sometimes overwhelming. I can't say yet if my pregnancy experiences will deter us from having a third baby. Some days I think there is no way I could do this again but my heart knows it only lasts so long and in the end you have this amazing creation that brings you unexplainable happiness. So, we will see.

Enough rambling. Let's talk about Pete. :) My little mommy's boy became a daddy's boy this weekend. Not only did I enjoy the break but my heart has never felt so full as it did watching my boys together. Pete absolutely loves his dad. He is a happy boy with me but when his dad is around he is almost giddy. He is sillier, giggles constantly and watches whatever his dad does. This evening they sat in the backyard looking at rocks and caterpillars together. I watched them with tears in my eyes. It was one of the most precious things I had ever seen and I felt so blessed. I have a wonderful husband, who is an amazing dad and a sweet, sweet baby boy.

Here are some pictures of our week/weekend. Thanks for reading and listening. Have a wonderful week and if you pray, pray that my pregnancy gets a little more comfortable and our baby girls arrives strong and healthy.

My boys:Our future volleyball player. Me and our baby girl.Walk at Meijer Gardens today.

Haircut

I gave Pete a haircut this morning. Not too bad eh?
Before....and after.

A Very Unfortunate Allergy

So, our boy is allergic to mosquitoes. This has been an almost devastating discovery for a family that lives in MI and a mom that has barely survived a long winter indoors. The doctor's recommendations were to keep him indoors and if we go outside use repellent and long sleeves and pants. Stay indoors????? It is finally warming up (a little) and we have to stay indoors???? I have been indoors for 7 months and I am more than ready to be out of doors. Long sleeves and pants in summer???

Pete is on Benadryl to treat his current bites and I have an Epipen shot to carry around in case his reaction makes it hard for him to breathe or the swelling gets worse. We spent the weekend in West Branch, MI where the bugs weren't as bad. He wore long sleeves and pants and mom was nervous wreck that he was going to get bitten more and his symptoms would get worse. So far each bite has turned into a bright red, large itchy welt and the one on his eyelid made his eye swell shut for 2 days. Your heart breaks to see your child sick or suffering and this was a hard week for me. First to see him bothered by the bites and then to try to figure out what kind of a life we are going to have if this problem persists all summer. Guess we will cross that bridge next time we go outside. Please pray for us. Here is our poor little feller and his red, swollen eye. We had a nice little getaway in West Branch this weekend. We drove up on Sat and had a wonderful dinner at a fancy restaurant in town. We played some cards and stayed up late watching the Lakers pull out a win in Denver. Phew. Sun we had lunch at G's Pizza, my favorite place to eat when we visit. The boys put the pontoon boat into the lake and we tooled around a little bit trying to catch some fish and get some sun. Omi made a big pork roast dinner and since Pete had missed his afternoon nap we put him down early and played cards and watch some more late night basketball. It was fun to get out of town for a couple days and of course good to be home. Pete did great except for waking up early both mornings. Not early like 6am early but like 5am early. And with those late night basketball games let's just say mom and dad are quite tired. Lakers in the playoffs doesn't come around every day though.....

Pete's eye is better today. We think he had a good time at his grandparents house and seeing his family. Here are a couple of pictures from our boat ride. 28 weeks now and I am feeling pretty good. A shirt that fit last week was impossible to get into yesterday. I'm thinking this baby girl is pretty big because I am quite uncomfortable already. I have a hard time breathing most of the time. Sleeping is a challenge. Heartburn and swelling are some other fun things going on right now. But nothing serious so I am happy and plugging along. Going to get back to the game, not looking so good right now. Have a great week and pray those little annoying bugs leave our baby alone.

A Week in the Life of Pete

At Meijer Gardens playing in the fountain yesterday. Entrance to this place came with our Children's Museum annual pass. We can visit the gardens through the end of May then June is the Gerald R. Ford Museum. We probably won't go there but once since it really isn't for kids. Cutie pie playing on the couch.
Pete in his fancy Gap shirt and curly hair. If we brush it after a bath it goes straight but if we let it dry it curls up. So cute.
At the park having lunch with dad. Mom and her belly. Pete and dad at the Children's Museum. Pete in his Laker's shirt. Come on boys, beat Denver!
Pete checking out his new big boy car seat.

Names

My vote is for Jamie Marie.

I Passed!

Don't ask me how but I passed my pregnancy glucose test today. I am still in shock. Relieved, thankful, but shocked! I didn't pass my first test with Pete and didn't expect to this time. I had my 27 week doctors appointment this morning. It had been 5 weeks since my last appointment so I was excited to get back in there and see how our little girl was doing. I drank my orange sugary stuff and then saw the doctor while I waited the required hour. My weight was 168. I think I had gained 6 pounds in the last 5 weeks. But after 27 weeks now I have only gained 9 pounds. My doctor said about this time women have usually gained about 16. I told her, don't worry, I will make up for it in the next 13 weeks. She said she wasn't worried. :) My blood pressure was good and all my measurements were right on schedule. Our little girl's heartbeat was loud and clear. My doctor said she was right at the front of my belly. No wonder I can see and feel her move so much. She even said if P. puts his ear to my tummy he should be able to hear her heartbeat. Too bad P. has terrible hearing but maybe we will try. So everything is going well. Next appointment I will be 31 weeks along! In the 30's! Can you believe it? Time is going so fast and it is getting so exciting. I caught the end of a Baby Story today on TLC and got so excited to go into labor and meet our baby girl. OK, maybe not the labor part but the part where they hand you your baby part. Oh and I told my doctor about how much she moves. I explained how I can always feel her kicking, flipping or just tapping and she said that she has noticed that usually results in active children. Not always but from what she has seen babies that move a lot in the womb, move a lot outside of it too. Ha. P. and I joked about how she was going to be a handful but I didn't know there might actually be some truth to it. Anyway, so after I saw the doctor it had been an hour and they drew my blood for my glucose, anemia and thyroid test. I asked the technician when I would know the results and she said Tues probably, or I could call on Monday to see if they had my results. I was so anxious to hear so I called before they closed today and they had my results. I passed! OMG I passed! But they said my iron was low and should start taking a supplement. I can do that!

Here are some pictures of Pete from this week. He fully enjoys getting really dirty in the sandbox. The dogs are sunbathing in the background. I got the sand toys out of the garage and he has a ball using the shovels to cover his legs with sand (and his head).I thought Abby looked really pretty in this picture so I threw it on here. We got our annual pass to the Children's Museum yesterday. Here is one of Pete playing while we were there. We plan to go back again this weekend with dad. And here are a couple from our date night tonight. Our friend Kari babysat for us while we went to dinner and Lowe's. I had a giant burger with cheese, bacon and mushrooms on it, with waffle fries and a water. We shared "dessert sliders" for dessert which were 4 huge ice-cream cookie sandwiches with chocolate sauce on them. It's 10pm and I am still stuffed. We got some new clean sand for Pete's sandbox at Lowe's and came home to find a happy little boy. He was sweaty from playing so much, chasing the dogs with his walker and playing hide and seek with Kari. I guess he did perfectly well with only a short cry after Abby toppled him over while playing. It was so fun to come home and see our smiley boy. Next time we won't wait so long between dates.Pete had just woken up from a nap when we were leaving on our date so he is still trying to get his bearings in this picture. He wasn't so sure what was going on but he is still cute when he is sleepy. So, that is our week. Fun outside and fun at the museum and a fun night out for mom and dad. P. scheduled me my first ever pregnancy massage for tomorrow at 11am. I am really looking forward to it. Hope everyone has a nice weekend. AM

Our Weekend

I had a wonderful Mother's day today. I got to sleep in until 8am, wooowhooo! I woke up to cinnamon rolls and Starbucks. We had lunch at a deep dish pizza place that gave us free dessert for Mother's Day. Then I had a nice talk with my mom before we went to a friend's graduation party where of course we ate more food. And had Costco cake, my favorite. Here is a picture of me and my newly graduated friend Kari. Congrats Kari and best wishes for a bright and happy future! Thanks to my perfect husband for a great day. Here are a couple pictures we took at the pizza place.
Our silly boy being silly this afternoon. Pete standing on his own. I say, "stand up like a big boy," and he lets go of whatever he is holding onto. I finally was prepared with the camera and got a picture. Pete playing in the backyard Friday. Pete and I went to the Grand Rapids Children's Museum on Thursday night. P. had to teach but I can't wait until he can go with us. They have family night on Thursdays where kids are free and adults are $1.50. Pete had a blast. I think I might buy an annual pass so we can go anytime and then you can get into these other places like Meijer Gardens, the zoo and the art museum at other times during the summer too. Here are some pictures.
New fridge magnets mom bought at a garage sale for $.25.Pregnancy is plugging along. 26 weeks. Friday I have my doc appt with my glucose and anemia tests. Fun, fun. Baby girl is kicking, kicking, kicking. Love it. I am feeling pretty good. The morning sickness is gone completely. The only troubles are being tired and being a little achy here and there. Other than that I am good. Except that the Lakers lost big time today. Boy was that a big bummer. Have a wonderful week all and until next time! AM

Goofball

Here is our little goofball trying to rip and tear a milk jug top. He would grunt and try to pull it apart, then put it in his mouth and act like he was tearing it with his teeth. I kept taking it away from him and he would convince me to give it back. It was pretty hilarious. What a joy he is.

Tulip Time Festival

We went to the Tulip Festival in Holland, MI on Monday. It was pretty cool. Mostly I like the pictures we got there but the flowers were nice too. We ate fair food (corn dogs & turkey legs) that were really bad for us, walked around some shops and found a park that was free to get into to check out the tulips. The weather was nice, not too hot and not too cold. It's still a little chilly here but the past few days have been almost 70 and it has been a nice change from the rainy, windy, cold weather we have had all spring. Pete was wonderful and happy the whole time. He missed his afternoon nap but you would have never known. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the day.