IT'S A BOY!!!!!

Well we recently went for our ultrasound and our hunches were confirmed, it's a boy! We are very excited to be adding a boy to the family and really looking forward to having one of each. Ella seems to understand she is having a brother and has started asking when he is coming out. Today I went shopping with her to pick out some new "boy" baby things and she really enjoyed finding things for her brother. She kept saying things like "I bet my baby brother will love this" and "This is good for a baby brother". We bought a few outfits, and she picked out a bib and hat ( she was very proud of her selections!). We have decided to do the room in blue and chocolate brown and have already picked out a bedding set. I am really excited to start setting up the room. We are even going to have Ella make some art for his walls, a sort of first gift to her brother. As for names, we like Brennan, but are keeping our options open (we have till November after all) and the middle name will almost certainly be Steven (Craig's middle name), Ella has my middle name so it's a nice trend.

Whitecaps Game

For Father's day this year Ella and I got Craig tickets to a Whitecaps game and we recently went. We also took Ella to a game there last year and she did pretty good so with her being a year older I was really hoping she would be as good if not better. We had great seats again this year, front row behind home plate. This is nice because it gives Ella a little more room to move around without annoying anyone in front of her! The Whitecaps games are fun because they throw in a lot of fun activities between innings to hold the interest of the kids. Ella loved watching the mascots dance and even watched some of the game this year. We would like to take Ella to a Tiger's game, but let's face it the cost of tickets, plus the drive are not worth it yet when she probably can't sit still for a game. So we figure a Whitecaps game is a good start for her. She can see baseball, have the experience and it doesn't cost a fortune! She also enjoyed some snacks (of course). I think the snacks might be her favorite part. She did start to get a bit hard to manage in the middle of the game, but I suppose this is to be expected after a 20oz pink lemonade and a half of bag of cotton candy :). It's all part of the experience right?! The game ended with fireworks which Ella had been looking forward to all night. All in all a fun family night out!

Ella has a way with words...

Now that Ella is just over three she talks constantly. And I mean constantly....especially if you are trying to talk on the phone or to someone else ;) Her speech developed pretty early and she has always been pretty easy to understand. She started participating in conversations and speaking in complete sentences pretty early on. However just like any three year old in some areas she still speaks her own language. Here are a few of my favorites and their more traditional translations:

What she says = What is really means

"backum" = vacuum

"cramra" = camera

"potstickle" = popsicle

"big bed" = mom and dad's bed

"rectangle doors" = the cupboard where all the snacks are

"that is yuck for me" = there is no way I am going to eat that

"I have a really great idea" = I want to do something I am not supposed to

"cheese with stuff in it" = cheese quesadilla

"I love you in the whole wide world" = I love you a lot

A cute side note....recently Ella has been into "telling secrets", basically we whisper silly things to each other. The other day I told her I had a secret to tell her and whispered "you are going to be a big sister", she with a big smile whispered back "no I'm not". Things like this crack me up! Hopefully in a few months she be a bit more excited about new little on on the way :)

First Trip To The Dentist!

Well this week I took Ella on her first trip to the dentist. It started off good...she was really excited to go the night before and the day of (granted she has no idea what the dentist is). She was still happy in the waiting room, even walked back to the room and hopped in the chair herself. She got her bib and glasses on and seemed to be doing really well. Then they asked her to open her mouth....forget it, she refused. And I mean refused! I couldn't even pry her mouth open. Oh well, she got a toothbrush and sticker for her efforts and well be back to try again in 6 months. :) Maybe next time!

Summer Vacation!!!

Well summer vacation is finally here and I couldn't be happier! No work, no more getting up early, and no more long to do lists. I'm looking forward to doing lots of fun things with Ella again this summer. Last summer we had a blast and I expect now that she is a year older this year will be even more fun. This will also be the last summer that she is an only child so I'm going to take advantage of only having one and do all we can! One of the things we are doing again this summer are swim lessons and Ella is enjoying them even more than last time. She smiles the whole lesson and even remarked "this is awesome!", many times. In this class they wear a float block on their back which helps them be more independent and she loves that. She can kick and paddle her way back and forth across the pool without any help from me. However she is still not to thrilled with putting her face in the water so we're working on that. Other things we are doing include classes again this summer at Gymboree. This year we are taking art and a play and learn class. She really enjoyed it last year and she is already excited about going again. We will also take some trips to the zoo, the beach, library, museum, and any other fun spots. She has never been to the Grand Rapids Children's Museum, so I also hope to go there. In mid July my sister Beth will come to visit so we are excited to see her and her growing belly! (We are due a month apart!). In early August Ella and I will fly to Florida to visit my mom, dad, and Beth. This will be my last trip down until after the new baby is born so I am looking forward to going. As for baby #2, he or she is still cooking. I still feel sick from time to time, but I'll live. We find out in a week and a half what gender our little on is. Can't wait for the big ultrasound. I'm still guessing boy :)

Memorial Weekend

We had a great time over Memorial weekend. The weather was beautiful and we spent lots of time outside. We got out pool set up and planted our garden. This year we are growing tomatoes, peppers, jalapenos, watermelon, pumpkins, and cucumbers. I also have a strawberry plant potted on the deck and am going to do some herbs in pots as well. We spent a lot of time enjoying the sun and relaxing and had friends over Sunday for a cookout and bonfire. All in all it was a very relaxing weekend. Ella enjoyed helping in the garden, splashing around in her pool, running through the sprinkler, and playing in her new sandbox, a birthday present from Grandma Barb and Grandpa Bruce :). I can't wait until summer break when this can be our new normal. As for baby #2 he or she is coming along nicely :), I'm starting to feel sick less often and seem to have some energy back. Nearly 16 weeks along now and looking forward to our BIG ultrasound in a few weeks :) My guess is still boy....

Here comes baby number two!!!!

Well it's official, we are expecting baby number two! I am about 13 weeks along and due in November. We are VERY excited!!! We started planning to have a second one in the winter and I was lucky enough to conceive on our first cycle trying. So far this pregnancy has been very different than my first. I was way more exhausted and am also experiencing a lot of headaches and morning sickness. In fact I am experiencing morning sickness and evening sickness...it's grand. I've heard morning sickness is supposed to start getting better at 12 weeks....well I'm still waiting on that. Also with Ella I gained a lot of weight and I am hoping not to repeat that. So far I've only gained about 3lbs...so far so good. We heard the heartbeat for the first time last week and also got a surprise ultrasound which was really neat. It's amazing the detail and features you can see in the baby so early. I'll have my next ultrasound around the fourth of July and we are definitely finding out the gender of the baby. No matter how much I kid myself, I know I can't wait to find out. Basically I can't wait to start shopping for new baby stuff! As for what we are wishing for....truly just a healthy baby! I always knew I wanted to have at least one little girl, so when I had Ella that dream was complete. So now I truly don't care either way. It would be fun to have a boy, and one of each. But it would also be fun to have 2 girls. I do however have a feeling it's a boy, of course I thought Ella was a boy too. The heart rate was about 168 so based on old wives tales that means girl. Chinese gender prediction chart also says girl. I know I'm thinking about it too much! Either way we are thrilled! Also on a side note I found out a few weeks ago my sister is expecting as well. She is due on December 28th just a few weeks after me! So fun :)