The Bomb Pop Adventure....

Here is a picture of a mama robin and her babies (you can see one (beak) of the three, just to the left of the mama's beak). There are three babies in this nest, which DH found (before the birds hatched from their eggs) under our deck. This picture is taken from our laundry room window. It has been fun keeping tabs on them...

Update: "H", her mom, DH, Bug, and I went to a baseball game on Saturday night, after having dinner at our house. We had lots of fun, although, sitting in the hard, uncomfortable seats were not fun for "H". She is officially getting uncomfortable. She will be 37wks on Wednesday. I will go to her doctor's appointment on Tuesday with her, DH will stay home with Bug, as the appointment lands during Bug's naptime. I will update more on baby when we know more...

We have a busy week this week: haircuts (for Mommy and Bug) and bible study meeting on Monday, indoor waterpark playdate and "H's" doctor appointment on Tuesday, another playdate and family small group meeting at church on Wednesday, and we are having our house sprayed for bugs on Thursday (Bug and I have to leave the house for 6 hours--because DH and I both have asthma). Friday is our only free day this week...I guess it will make the week fly by, right??

Today marked a milestone for Bug: She had her first Bomb Pop. We heard the ice cream truck go by, and we ran out to get a treat. I couldn't believe the size of this popsicle!! I am pretty sure it was about 3x's the size that they used to be when I was a kid. Anyway, we saved it till after dinner (Mommy and Daddy helped her eat this...don't worry!). Here are the progression of pictures:
Before
She is saying--"I can't believe Mommy gave me this whole thing..."
Mmmmm, this is yummy Mommy!!

The sugar high is beginning....

A true Iowa girl at heart....(she even eats her popsicle like corn on the cob)!!!
Notice all the blue spots on her legs and her clothes.....
After--she doesn't exactly look pleased that the popsicle is gone. Notice the blue slime running down her arm??

This is what her hands and face looked like...AFTER I cleaned them off!!! Kinda makes me wonder what exactly is in those popsicles?! It took a bath and lots of Baby Magic to get that gunk off!

A totem pole of faces....

Well, blogger won't let me upload any pictures--they must be having issues. Until then, you have to try to guess why the title of this entry is about a totem pole. I will try to remember to upload them later. Anyway, we spent Memorial Day weekend visiting DH's family in Minnesota. I, of course, took a ton of pictures! It was nice to get together, catch up and just have fun. We took the kids to the park a couple of times, because it was such beautiful weather. We headed home on Sunday, so we could have a day at home. It was nice to have DH at home with a day off to spend together as a family. Soon there will be four!! :-)

BirthMommy/Baby update: We went with "H" to her appointment on Tuesday. She is still measuring right on for almost 35wks. Other than that, no change. Starting with her next appt (weekly, now), she will be put on a non-stress test every appointment for about 30 minutes before she meets with the Dr. After her appointment on Tuesday, we all went to Culvers for dinner. Mmmmmmm. They are coming to our house to visit on Saturday, have dinner, then we are all going to a baseball game. "H's" mom got 4 tickets in the 3rd row from her employer. We are excited--it will be such a fun time!! I am sure there will pictures to follow...

I am trying to plan ahead and work on Bug's birthday party details....just in case the baby makes an early entrance into the world. I better get going on invitations...

Ok, I got the pictures to load--here they are (edited at 7pm):

Bug and her cousins riding the Gator
Erin playing at the park
Tara at the park
Tara, Erin and Bug on the slide
I took this picture of a bumble bee--it took about 10 shots to get this, but it finally worked!!
DH and Andrew swinging at the park
Just hanging out...
Andrew enjoying the slide
Erin getting a "under-dog" from her favorite uncle...
What girl isn't going to chase after him?? He is such a cutie!!
Aunt Kim helping Bug at yet, another park.
Bug and her cousin Tara swinging at the park
Bug loving the slides
Daddy not loving the slide too much, as he gets stuck in it.
I think this picture is hilarious....can you tell she is a determined little girl?? (she climbed this wall all by herself!)
Another favorite picture

Last but not least....our Family Totem Poles. From the bottom: Uncle Matt, Erin, Tara, Bug, and Grandpa.

A pile of Life...

Here is what happens when the cereal cabinet is left open, and Mommy takes a shower not knowing that Daddy left the cabinet open, and Bug is hungry. What does Mommy do--No, she doesn't clean it up---She grabs the camera first!!! Can't miss out on a picture like that!! Cinnamon Life cereal is her favorite! When the girl is hungry, not much can stop her. Another example--tonight I was on the phone with my mom, and all of a sudden, I realized it was too quiet. Bug was up to something. Well, I go looking for her, and here she is eating a piece of bread. She had gotten the loaf of bread (don't ask me how--it was in the middle of the counter--we have to do that now, so that she can't reach things she shouldn't have), taken off the twist tie (that I have yet to find), and started eating. I am telling you, the girl isn't even two, and can fend for herself!! Haha...just kidding...sort of.

Well, we have been quite busy here...Saturday brought us getting together with "H" and her Mom, and meeting her Aunt and Grandma. We met at 4:30 and looked at lots of family pictures, and just chatted. After chatting, we went out to dinner that was Ohhhh, Soooo Yummy!! We ended up at "Noodles and Co." Lets just say, I will be going there again. After dinner, we headed back to "H's" and her Mom's house to chat some more. (Yes, yet another thing we have in common--We love to talk!!) "H" was also gracious enough to give us two ultrasound pictures, she had done in February. As we were getting ready to leave, she said that the baby was moving (she said that it is the baby's schedule to kick at night). We hung around and got to see the baby move. Bug went over, and after a little coaxing, she touched the "baby". It was so cute. We felt so blessed and excited to be able to see the baby move. Thank-You "H", for sharing that moment with us. It was another wonderful visit, and was nice to learn more about this family, and just reinforced the fact that we are meant to be together. It never hurts to have more extended family, does it? :-)

Today we had a playdate and had lots of fun at the park with Heather and Lily. Life gets so busy, and we just don't get together enough!! Here are some pictures of our day:
Our little Bug loves to climb!

Lily loving the swing!! Goofin' around-- A picture before heading home for lunch.. ...And a hug too!!

Tomorrow night it is out to dinner with Uncle Gary who is here for business from West Virginia. It will be nice to see him, and yes, Aunt Carolyn I promise to provide him with pictures of Bug to bring home to you! This weekend brings us travelling to visit DH's family. It will be a nice to have some family time, laugh, and just catch up. That is all for now...Safe travels to everyone travelling this weekend!

A nice strong heartbeat...

(Here is a picture of Bug in the car, as we were going through Chicago on the way to Pittsburgh on Friday.)

Well, we made it home (or hoe, as Bug calls it--she likes to leave the m's out of alot of her words) safe and sound, at 5am on Tuesday. We decided to drive through the night, to make it easier on all of us--Bug slept pretty much the entire time, and when she woke up the few times, she just sucked her thumb and listened to us talk...until she fell back asleep. Driving through the night was worth it, if only to avoid Chicago traffic. We have never gotten through Chicago in an hour before...that was nice.

The other driving force for coming home early, was to attend "H's" dr's appointment. After having about 3 hours of sleep, we woke up and got ready for another short drive (about 45 minutes away), to her appointment. It was so nice to see her again. We all (DH, Bug, Me, "H", and "H's" Mom) crammed into the exam room, and watched "H" get weighed, measured, and finally, got to hear the baby's heartbeat. Dr said the baby has a "nice, strong heartbeat". It was so good to hear, almost made me cry. The Dr also said that there is no medical reason to have another ultrasound, so it will have to be a surprise. Both "H" and I were bummed...we both want to know. As we were leaving, we agreed to chat soon to make plans to get together this weekend.

Our Pitts trip was fun...as always, we just relaxed, ate, relaxed and ate some more. We visited "Aunt" Pat, and "Uncle" Jack, and also got to see Beth. On our last day, we also visited Great-Aunt Irene. Unfortunately, our schedules didn't work out and we didn't get to see Aunt Suzanne or Uncle Bill this trip. :-( It was good to see Grandma though, and even better to see her being able to walk at the mall. We are so glad we had the chance to visit, but sad to leave. This was the shortest visit we have ever had, so we plan on spending more time when we go back in October/November. Thanks Grandma for everything--especially the yummy desserts!!

Well, this weekend our project is to tear out Bug's closet, and install a closet organizer, to utilize the space (up to the ceiling), as we are going to need it very soon. We are also going to get the infant/newborn clothes out again, and get those washed and ready to go. I don't want to get caught unprepared!!! Besides, Bug's second birthday and the birth of this baby are probably going to be very close, and we want one less thing to worry about (plus, I am just a freak when it comes to being prepared!!).

That is about all for updates--I will leave you with pics from Pitts:
Cheesin' for the camera...At a rest stop trying to start the car, while waiting for Daddy....
After church, on Saturday at Pat and Jack's house...That dress Bug is wearing cost $5 (after-Easter clearance at Target!!).

Bug getting smooches from Mommy and Great-Grandma
Great-Grandma, Bug, and Daddy
I think this picture will go down as my all time favorite--Bug and Daddy are both smiling, and Bug is actually in the air--have I mentioned, that I love our new camera?!?
Great-Grandma and Pat
Bug playing out in the backyard with "Uncle" Jack
Pretty rose that Bug got for Great Grandma for Mother's Day
Bug walking in the mall with Great-Grandma
At the play area at the mallCuddling with Great-Grandma