Homecoming

We spent last weekend in Stillwater, celebrating America's greatest homecoming. This was my 10th year celebrating OSU's homecoming! Can you believe it? We went every year we lived in Stillwater during college and grad. school and for the last four years, we have come back each year and spent the weekend with some dear friends who are always sweet to host us. It's a fun tradition, and I look forward to it every year.

Nathan went with us last year. He was only five months old. This year since he no longer fits in a baby sling and strollers are impossible at Walkaround, we decided to let him stay with Grammy and Papa Joe for the weekend. I missed showing him all the traditions, but it was the best decision. Maybe next year we'll bring him again and Baby Brother too. Now that will be crazy!

Friday afternoon my Master's program had an alumni get together. It was nice to catch up with people I hadn't seen in a long time and brought back so many memories of our crazy life in grad. school. Afterward, we walked over to Matt and Amie's apartment. We ate dinner and then headed to the Walkaround festivities. The House Dec's are always fun to see, but I can tell I'm getting older when I question whether fighting the crowds is worth it

We spent the rest of Friday night and most of Saturday playing games with Matt and Amie. They are probably our favorite couple to play games with, and they always find  really fun ones. We played a couple of new ones with them. Matt and I really liked one of them and we ended up playing it four times on Saturday! I think Matt already put it on his Christmas list :). We also squeezed in a game of Settlers and managed to catch some of the OSU vs. Iowa State game. We also had a great time visiting with Matt and Amie. We're both expecting baby boys this Spring, so it was fun to chat about pregnancy and baby things. It was nice to get a little break from Nathan too and just have some uninterrupted adult time to visit and play games. We always have a great time in Stillwater and are looking forward to next year's Homecoming!

Pink or Blue for Number 2!

We were so excited to find out whether Baby #2 was a boy or a girl. A lot of people asked me whether I wanted a boy or a girl (By the way, I really don't like that question, since I have no control over the outcome), but I knew we would be thrilled either way. I would love to have a girl. I have a special relationship with my mom and would love to have that type of relationship with my own daughter.  Matt and I have always said we wanted both a boy and a girl,  but this baby isn't planned to be our last baby, so I didn't feel like I had to have a girl this time. And I kept thinking about how sweet two boys would be especially being close in age. I would love for Nathan to have a brother and a built in best friend. Neither Matt nor I have a sibling of the same gender, and I knew it would be a unique and special bond for brothers. And after having a little boy, I know how precious they are!

Either way, we are blessed to be expecting another sweet baby, but we couldn't wait to find out!

I kept with tradition and baked a cake to reveal the gender of our second child. My parents came over for cake the night of our ultrasound and we skyped with Matt's family as we cut the cake.

We are thrilled to announce that

We are having another BOY!

Nathan loved his blue cake, and even though he doesn't understand right now, I know he will love his baby brother too.

Here are a few pictures of our sweet boy who is affectionately known as Baby Brother until we can finalize a name.

We already love this baby so much and are preparing for the craziness of raising two little boys. I'm looking forward to building forts and playing superheros and raising these two little boys to grow into Godly men. Children are a blessing!

Pumpkin Patch

This past Saturday we took a little trip to a fun pumpkin patch, and we all had such a good time. I remember taking Nathan last year to a local pumpkin patch when he was 5 months old and how he couldn't even sit up on his own. It's crazy how much difference a year makes.

We rode a tractor out to the pumpkin patch. Nathan loved it. Once we got off, he chased after it, and every time he saw a tractor while we were in the field, he took off after it. He definitely liked it more than the pumpkins.

He wasn't too thrilled with the pumpkins. We ended up not even getting any. I figured he is still too young to carve or paint one this year, so we just looked at them and let him explore.

We walked around for a little bit and then got back on the tractor to head back to the Pumpkin Playland. They had different activities set up for kids. Nathan seemed a little young for a lot of the activities, but he didn't care.

They had horseshoes set up, and Nathan picked them all up and stacked them on the post. He was proud of himself :).

We had a great day celebrating Fall!

Babymoon

Last weekend, Matt and I dropped Nathan off my at parents' house and  headed out of town for a little Babymoon. We traveled East and stayed in Bentonville, AR for the weekend. Originally we had planned a lot of outdoor activities: walking trails, exploring downtown areas, and miniature golf. Unfortunately the weather didn't cooperate with our plans, but we still managed to have a great weekend.

We made it to Bentonville around noon on Friday and stopped for lunch at a pizza place we wanted to try. Afterward, we checked into our hotel and then decided to visit a new art museum in town. It was a really neat museum. Neither Matt nor I are big art museum people, but this one was free and we had heard good things about it. I'm glad we had a chance to visit it. There are outdoor trails all around, but the weather was cold and drizzly, so we stayed inside.

This was our favorite piece. It's just a canvas of spools of thread, but looking through the sphere you can make out the picture.

Friday evening we went out to eat at a Mexican bistro at the Bentonville square. Their downtown is really cute, and they were having some sort of festival on the square. We'll have to go back sometime when the weather is nicer and look around more.

After dinner, we found a cheap movie theater and watched The Avengers. We both really liked the movie.

Saturday morning we slept in and ate breakfast and then visited the Peel Mansion in Bentonville. I really enjoy looking at old houses and mansions. I was a little disappointed with the mansion since they had a lot of it closed off that we couldn't tour, but it was still fun to see. Afterward, drove down to Fayetteville. We visited their farmer's market downtown and browsed a couple of stores. Again, had the weather been nicer, we probably would have spent more time exploring, but we still had fun walking around even for just a short period of time.

We also stopped at a little cupcake bakery for a treat. We had some really yummy cupcakes, probably the best ones we've eaten. If we ever make it back to Fayetteville, we'll be stopping there again.

We ate lunch in Fayetteville and then drove back to Bentonville. We relaxed in the hotel room for a couple of hours. I napped and we watched some TV. Later that afternoon we headed back to the movie theater and watched the new Batman movie. We hadn't planned on watching two movies while we were there, but since the cold weather changed our plans, the movies were a fun option. We rarely go to the movies at home, so it felt like a special treat. We stopped at a pizza place afterward. We ate a lot of pizza and Mexican food on the trip.

We went back to the hotel and watched some football before we fell asleep.

We spent a lazy Sunday morning at the hotel and then drove back home.

In the craziness of parenting and life in general, spending a relaxing weekend away just focusing on the two of us was a nice break and full of special memories.

And here's a little 18 week baby bump picture to commemorate what we were celebrating on our little vacation!

17 Months Old

Nathan, You are 17 months old! We've had another great month with you.

Your vocabulary has gone through the roof this month. I can't even think of all the words you can say. Some new ones this month are truck, please, elbow, ball, snack, tickle, bye bye, teeth, sock, bubble and keys. Some words are more clear than others. Elbow and bubble are your first two syllable words that you can say pretty clearly (besides Momma and Dadda). You shorten a lot of other words. You'll repeat almost anything we ask you to now and are getting better at using words in context. When you want held or up on our bed, you say, "Up, up, up." Sometimes I'll ask you a question and you'll shake your head dramatically and say, "No, no, no." Usually it's in response to asking if you want to go night night or if you need a new diaper.

Every night before dinner and at bed time, we say prayers. At dinner we hold hands to pray, and as soon as we sit down, you'll reach out to grab my hand. So sweet. At bedtime, we brush your teeth, then you run tell Daddy night night and give kisses. Afterward, I'll give you your lovie and paci and you'll pick out a couple of books to read. After story time, I'll tell you it's time to pray. You'll put your lovie in your lap and put your hands together to pray. I know you don't understand what we're doing just yet, but I think it's the sweetest thing that you are getting into a habit of praying at such a young age.

You  have really turned into a little boy this month and are obsessed with balls and trucks. When we are out on a walk you'll point out and say truck whenever you see one, and toy trucks are some of your favorite toys. You push them all over the house. You are getting better at throwing balls too. You still like to play with your dishes and love to be outside, especially when you get to play on your slide.

You're a pretty good eater. You're still not a huge fan of veggies. Fruit, cheese and ice cream are your favorite foods. You typically eat yogurt and a banana for breakfast. Sometimes you have toast instead of yogurt. For lunch, I'll give you leftovers sometimes if we have some that you really like. Our other go to lunch foods are grilled cheese sandwiches, PB&J sandwiches, chicken nuggets, fish sticks, or mac and cheese. You usually always get a cheese stick and fruit with your lunch too. You eat whatever we are having for dinner. Pasta dishes and casseroles are usually your favorites, and you always get veggies with dinner too (even though you don't always eat them).

This month, you learned how to dip your food. I gave you some ketchup with your chicken nuggets one day, and now there is no going back. You love to dip everything. If we're at a Mexican restaurant, you won't eat your crackers unless we dip them in salsa for you. You dip everything in ketchup, and usually dip your banana in your yogurt at breakfast. The other day we ate breakfast out, and you decided to dip your hash browns in my biscuits and gravy. Your daddy thought that was a pretty good idea! You also have started feeding yourself with a spoon. You've been eating finger foods by yourself for months, but I've usually fed you anything that required a spoon. You took over this month though and won't let me feed you anymore. You're doing great though. I'm impressed with your motor skills!

We are going to story time at the library every week, and you love it. You light up whenever we walk in. You have changed so much in the last few months. You never sit down during story time now. You stand in the middle of the circle and dance and smile and laugh the whole time. It's a highlight of your week for sure.

You caught a little virus this month that had you under the weather for several days. I hated that you weren't feeling well, but I sure did enjoy the extra cuddles and snuggles and the chance to spoil you. I felt like I got a little bit of my baby boy back while you were sick. Those baby moments are few and far between these days.

 

We turned your car seat around this month. The first time you rode forward, you smiled and laughed the whole time. Since you're a big boy now and are facing forward, we took away your paci in the car. You're not too fond of that, but you adjusted quickly. You point out all the trucks you see as we are driving.

 

You weigh 25lbs and are wearing 18 and 18-24 month clothes and a size 5 diaper. 

You continue to be a great sleeper. You nap for about 2 hours a day and still sleep from 8:00pm-7:00am. You are so tired by nap time, you always fall right asleep.

Your 17th month was a great one, and we are looking forward to all the new experiences to come.

Tulsa State Fair

Going to the Tulsa State Fair has become a tradition in our family. We've gone every year since we've lived in Broken Arrow, and we look forward to it each year. We go for three reasons: Sugar Art Show, food, and ice cream. Now that Nathan's a little older, I'm sure we'll add more things to our list, but these are the main ones. This year Matt's parents and my parents joined us for the fair.

Our first stop was the wedding cakes. The detail and hours of work always blow my mind. They're just incredible and fun to look at, and we usually spot a Food Network Star or two while we're there. We get there as early as we can to avoid the crowds, especially since we're pushing a stroller now.

Poor Nathan wasn't feeling very good on Saturday and took a little cat nap while we browsed.

We stopped and looked at the play equipment. Nathan has really started to love playing on swing sets, and he always goes down the slide on his belly. We've tried to teach him to go sitting up, but he always turns around. He would have stayed and played all day if we would have let him.

We made a quick stop at the petting zoo. Nathan wasn't too impressed, probably because he wasn't feeling good.

His favorite stop was the ice cream. I think he loves the nitro ice cream as much as we do. We wait all year for that ice cream. We were walking to find a table, and my mom was carrying him behind me. He kept reaching out and grabbing my shoulder, so I would turn around and give him a bite. Daddy loves him an awful lot to share his ice cream :).

That night we had some friends over to watch the OSU/Texas game. We tried to get a family picture of us all wearing orange, but Nathan was not in the mood (or he somehow knew the outcome of the ball game.)

It was a tough day to be a Cowboy, but we still had a great Fall weekend.

First Trimester the Second Time Around

I've always heard that the second pregnancy seems to go much more quickly than the first, and seeing as how I'm already in my second trimester (and have been for a couple of weeks), I would agree. I thought I'd do a little recap of my first trimester.

Symptoms

It's hard not to think of this pregnancy in terms of my last one. It's just natural to compare them. My pregnancy with Nathan was really great. I had very few complaints, and while there have certainly been differences between my first trimester with Nathan and this time around, I would definitely say that they are much more similar than different.

The biggest first trimester symptom with this baby was fatigue (same as last time). I was exhausted all the time, and was definitely looking forward to getting some of my energy back in the second trimester, and thankfully I have. I wonder what changes have been going on in my body, because it seemed like overnight that I regained so much energy around when I hit the 14 week mark. I was thankful for a low key, flexible schedule this summer, because I took almost daily naps with Nathan throughout the first few weeks of pregnancy. I would count down the minutes to his nap time, so I could crawl under the covers too, and if I wasn't able to get a nap in during the day, I was asleep before 9:00 that night. I was tired of being tired all the time and had a hard time getting anything done around the house except the essentials. Unfortunately, my pregnancy started around the same time that we dropped Nathan's morning nap, and since I napped with him in the afternoon, it was hard to get anything accomplished during the day. I still notice a little dip in energy in the afternoons currently, but I'm able to press through without a nap most days.

With Nathan, I rarely had any nausea. Every once in a while my stomach would feel a little off, but those moments were rare. That's probably the biggest difference in this pregnancy. While I have not gotten sick at all with this little one (thankfully), my stomach felt off and unsettled almost every day. I never felt extremely nauseous, but the unsettled feeling lingered most of the time and food didn't sound good a lot of the time. I remember with Nathan never feeling pregnant in the first trimester because I had such little nausea, and while this time it was still very mild in comparison to many women, I was definitely reminded that there was something going on in my body. Thankfully the second trimester has cured that symptom too, and I'm feeling really good.

I'm having a few problems sleeping. I get up two to three times a night to use the bathroom, which normally isn't a big deal, but lately I've had problems falling back asleep once I wake up. My mind starts racing and I have a hard time relaxing. Hopefully this is temporary.

I haven't really had any other major symptoms. With Nathan, I would read through a list of pregnancy symptoms and think that I didn't have any of them (except fatigue). I have noticed with this baby, that I have more of the symptoms, but they are really mild. I've gotten heartburn a couple of times, a few extra headaches, and teared up at more than one television show or movie, but none of them are pervasive or cause any real trouble.

Just like last time, I have been blessed with an easy pregnancy. I told a friend a couple of weeks ago, that I know I have easy pregnancies when my biggest complaint is not being able to eat cookie dough :). I'm hoping the rest of my pregnancy continues to go smoothly.


Favorite Moments

It's always fun announcing a new pregnancy. With both pregnancies, Matt and I decided to not publicly tell people "we were trying." We have a few reasons for keeping that private, but my favorite is that people are more likely to be surprised when we share our news. We let Nathan share our big news this time around with a lot of our family and friends by putting him in his Big Brother shirt. It was so fun to see people's reactions!

My first trimester ultrasound was also a favorite moment. Seeing that little baby and the itty bitty heart beating on ultrasound always allows us to breathe a big sigh of relief. I felt like the pregnancy wasn't "real" until that moment when we got to see the baby. I know pregnancy tests are accurate, but in my head I had a hard time basing such a huge life change on the results of a cheap little pregnancy test. It always sinks in more after that first appointment.

We got another treat when we went back to my next doctor's appointment. With Nathan, my doctor only did two ultrasounds. She just used a doppler to find the heart beat at the other appointments. So, we were surprised to get another ultrasound at my 13 week appointment. It's amazing to see how much the baby grows in four short weeks.

We haven't done much shopping this time around mainly because we can reuse most of our big baby items and we don't know the gender yet. We have picked out bedding for a boy and a girl and I love both of the bedding sets. We're hoping we'll be able to buy one in the next few weeks!

I just have so much fun thinking about adding this new baby to our family and thinking about how Nathan will respond as a big brother to a little brother or sister and how crazy our lives will be for a little while adding in a newborn. The Lord has blessed us abundantly allowing us to have another baby. We are so grateful for this little life.

Baby Bump

12 Weeks 

13 Weeks