The Air Show

We had been looking forward to the Air Show for a long time.  Todd especially.  We went two years ago (the last one they had) but the kids were too little and we couldn't stay long enough to see the Thunderbirds fly.  Todd had high hopes for this year.  But the weather had other ideas!

When we first go there, it was chilly but not bad.  We had fun looking at the planes and walking through one or two.  Then we found a spot to sit and watched a few planes fly.  Loops and upside down and straight up and straight down and every other cool thing!!  It was fun!  I took a video, but can't seem to get it to load . . .

Todd went off to buy us lunch and that's when the storm came.  We could tell it was coming and fast, so we grabbed all our gear and headed to the nearest hanger.  And then it started to rain.  And rain.  And pour.  And pour some more.  So we sat in the hanger for almost two hours.  

Here's Ethan:

And Madeline:

They did surprisingly good.  Having Grandpa and Nana there helped a lot.  We ate lunch, played with the free toy planes they gave out, saw the models and the chopper that were in the hanger, and tried not to get claustrophobic from the sheer number of people crammed inside!

When the down pour because a lighter rain, we decided it was best to make the 10-15 minute trek back.  So we gathered our stuff and set out walking in the cold rain.  Half-way back, it stopped raining.  But by then we were all wet and too cold to go back.  Todd would have and Ethan too.  But the cold and wet pregnant lady and four year old girl won out.  So we looked longingly at the F-16s flying in the distance as we loaded into our van.

Bummer.  It still was fun though, kinda like an adventure!

Someday babe, I PROMISE you'll get to see the WHOLE Air Show!!

May's Ten Things

May was a full and fun busy month!  I had so much to smile about in May.

1.  I found out I'm having a BOY!!  And though it took Madeline a little time to come around, she's really smiling about it too now.  Thanks to her cousin Alex who inspired her to proclaim herself, "queen of the house!"

2.  Ethan played in coach pitch/TBall and it was so much fun to watch!  He enjoyed it and did pretty good too.

 He even hit a few coach pitches and one game was the catcher for his team and caught a few balls then too.

 3.  I had the opportunity to do a photo shoot for my friend.

 4.  Madeline started ballet

 5.  Mother's Day was an all around happy day.

6.  We went to the Dentist and all four of us came out of it with NO CAVATIES!

7.  Madeline finished off preschool with a fabulous program and a cute memory book to keep.

8.  We went to The Air Show . . . we smiled about it, but it wasn't quite how we had hoped . . . a story for another day.

 9.  Memorial Day yesterday was a really great day spent with family and yummy food.

10.  I made these cupcakes, Maple and Cinnamon, and treats always make me smile.

 I wish you could smell them through the screen, they sure smelled yummy.  Todd came up the stairs after I finished making the frosting and proclaimed that our house smelled like a donut shop!  Yum!

Madeline's Preschool Program

I haven't joined in on Emmy Mom's proud mommy moments for a long time now, and figured this was a good week to do so!  Madeline had her end of the year Preschool Program this week.  And she sure did great!

She held her hand to her heart the entire time she held her flag so she would be ready when they said the Pledge:

 I thought it was cute that she sat like this most of the time, such a lady:

(Never mind the three times she adjusted her dress by lifting it above her head . . . haha, but good thing her little dress has matching shorts!  Thanks Nana!)

She knew all the songs and even did all the actions to them, an improvement from her Christmas Program.
She passed off her alphabet, her counting, her colors and shapes, and learned the Pledge of Allegiance!

 Her teachers made her a little scrapbook to remember the year.

I'm proud of my girl because she always did what her teachers asked her with a smile on her face.  She also befriended a little boy in her class who she said was always shy.  

 Her big brother was proud of her too!

Blueberry and Cream Cookies

Do you see this beautiful cookie:

it's almost 5 inches across.  Nine cookies filled the entire cooling rack last night when I made them.  They came from a mix, but not just any mix.  A fancy and most DELICIOUS mix.  Momofuku Milk Bar Mix.  Oh my, they are sooooo good.  BLUEBERRY AND CREAM COOKIES!

I just ate two.

I only meant to eat one.  It just happened.  My stomach is only mildly complaining.

What?  You say my last post was about treats too?  Hu?  You noticed that the last five pins I pinned on Pinterest were treats?

Shhhh.  Never mind that.

Can I pull the pregnancy card on this one?

Treats Because

Vanilla Flower Cakes  . . .

because it's Spring!

Butterfinger Brownies . . . 

 because of Pinterest!

Homemade Peach Pie . . .

because I love pie!

Mother's Day Pictures

Such a great day.  I love my kids!

 (and for all those people who say I don't even look pregnant, seriously?!?  I look huge!)

 I love my mama too!

Thanks to my hubby, my Dad and my kids for making the day so great for us moms!

A few more ballet pics

because I can't help myself . . .

My Ballerina

Yesterday, Madeline had her first ballet class.  I can't tell you enough how excited she was.  She was dressed and ready more than two hours early and insisted on wearing her ballet clothes the whole rest of the day.  And I didn't mind because, well, I sort of have a thing for ballet.

 I think I loved watching her class as much as she loved dancing in it.  I felt like I relived some of my happiest childhood memories.  I love ballet.

 She was darling, and I hope she can soak up the few years she can do ballet before she gets too tall for it like me.  Maybe then, she'll become a singer like her mom.  She already loves that too!  But for now, we are both going to enjoy every bit of dance we can.

A Photo Shoot with Two Darlings

Last week my friend asked me to do a photo shoot for her of her kids.  I was thrilled.  I still love doing shoots even though my camera time has been significantly less this year.  Her kids are so darling and we had a fun place for the shoot.  I think they turned out great.

 Isn't he super cute?!

 And she is too!

 I liked this one in vintage.

 And his eyes . . . look at those eyes!

 Cuteness!

It's fun to do shoots of darlings.

Woah!

Two woahs, actually.

First, the phone rang yesterday and it was one of Ethan's friends.  He called to see if Ethan could come over and play.  The answer was yes and before I could even think about him getting there, he said, "I'll ride my bike!"  and he ran out the door, grabbed his bike and was off before I could even watch him go.  Woah.  My child is old enough for that.  It wasn't far, just down the street and around the corner, but still.

Second woah . . . I'm 20 weeks pregnant today!  That's half way people!  And knowing my situation, it's more likely than not MORE than half way.

Yep.  Woah.

Having a Boy

I am so happy lately.  Very.  Happy.  And I know a lot of this has to do with finding out I'm having a boy.  It's kind of funny though, because I totally wanted a girl.  And I totally thought it was a girl too.  I mean, I thought it would be a girl before I even got pregnant.  We had the name picked out and everything.  When we found out during the ultrasound that it was a boy, I was actually quite surprised.  Almost shocked.  I really had thought it was a girl.  A boy!?!?!  Serious?  I wasn't sad.  Just surprised.  So many other people had thought boy, but I wasn't buying into it.  So funny, because now it seems completely perfect.

Now it's sunk in.  And I am happy.  So totally and completely happy.  It just seems right and perfect.  I can't wait to have another boy.  A different personality.  A little buddy.  Oh!  Can't wait!

The ultrasound went really well too.  He is doing about as good as can be expected at this point.  They chart how fast the blood is flowing through his brain with how many weeks he is.  There are three zones on the graph, and he's in the bottom one.  The top one is where you need transfusions.  So far, so good.  They told me it is quite possible that it won't start going up until 20 weeks anyway, but at least he didn't start out high!  I feel good about things.  My next ultrasound is on the 23rd.  They will become more often if the numbers start getting worse.  We'll just have to see.

For now, I'm just imagining a little cutie with spiky hair like Ethan's was.  And dreaming of blues and grays.

It's a . . .

BOY!!!

Is it 2:40 yet?

Yeah, my ultrasound isn't until 2:40 this afternoon.  It's kinda funny too, because I had a dream last night that they cancelled my appointment and forgot to tell me until I arrived (this HAS happened before!).  So when I woke up, I was freaking out just a wee bit.  :)  I finally just called them to confirm because I didn't want to spend the whole day worrying about nothing.  Phew, my appointment is really still on for today.  I already cleaned the bathrooms and my room and did laundry.  I'm about to go shopping with Madeline to buy her ballet shoes for her first ballet class! and then I think I'll be twiddling my thumbs!  I'm not sure why, but from the very first ultrasound with Ethan to the twenty-something one with Madeline, I never tired of them.  I just love getting ultrasounds!  They are pretty amazing to me.  Wu!  I'll keep you all posted . . .

Ethan left school with a, "I really think it's a boy mom!!"  and Madeline chimed in, "No!  I know it's a girl, I know a girl, a girl."

aaahhh!  :)

April's Ten Things

I'm starting to think that this year will be over, I'll have three kids, and I won't know what happened to me!  I'm not sure how every month goes faster than the last, but they sure seem to.  I had so much to smile about in April, despite the last week being sick.  The first three were fabulous!





1.  Ethan can ride his bike now!  See video below if you missed it.
2.  Madeline's ballet bun just made this mama smile.
3.  Easter!  I particularly liked the music at church, the feeling of the day, and getting a family picture taken.
4.  Being able to do a newborn photo shoot.  Oh those are fun!
5.  And speaking of babies, I can feel my baby move now!!
6.  I've enjoyed reading again now that the morning sickness has worn mostly off.
7.  I got to go with Todd and some of our friends to the Bees game.  My first baseball game ever.  I know, weird.  But it was really fun.  Our awesome seats helped with that.  And the churro. . .  :)
8.  I was able to plant the beginnings of my garden.  Peas and lettuce are already peaking up.  I'll be planting lots more soon.  I love vegetable gardening, though I still know nothing of it.
9.  I got to schedule my ultrasound.  IT'S TOMORROW PEOPLE.  :)
10.  My children decided that their new favorite pastime is drawing pictures of all the temples around the world.  Ethan spent over an hour yesterday looking at all the temple pictures in our church almanac book and drawing all of them.  Madeline just wants lots of picture temples for her paper princesses to get married in!

Yes, it all makes me smile.