Video Update

It's time for a video update (hopefully these work for y'all). Aaaand... action!

We'll kick things off with a little serenade for you...

Have you heard the quote, "Dance like nobody's watching; love like you've never been hurt; sing like nobody's listening; live like it's heaven on earth?" I'd like to draw your attention to the "dance like nobody's watching" segment as the title to this video... stick (or shall I say pick?) with it until the end. Just keepin' it real, folks.

Katelyn has gotten very brave on swings lately and likes to go "higher please" (especially on baby swings, but also on our regular swings in the backyard). Michael played a little joke on her at the park last week. He pretended to push her "really high"with a few small pushes - she wasn't having it, by saying "higher than this" - so he upped the ante with a giant push. Now that's more like it!

Aaaand... scene! Thanks for watching and enjoy your week!

A Little Bit of Everything

If you're up for a fly-by-the-seat-of-our-pants kind of post, keep on readin'! This one features some fun pictures and cute stories that showcase what we've been up to lately. Enjoy!

Last weekend as we were heading off to Lowe's (a girl's gotta dress the part, ya know!), Michael spotted a turtle creeping up our driveway. Katelyn loved seeing the turtle and kept saying hi to it. The following morning, we had a wild turkey sighting out our front window across the street. Katelyn later told me it was a tiger. Turtle, turkey, tiger - apparently she didn't want the other "t" animals feeling left out ;)

Later that day after dinner, every time I said, "Okay, Katelyn, it's time for bath time." She responded with, "Two minutes... I snuggle Daddy" as she cuddled in close. This back and forth happened about 6 times. Aww! Melt a mama's heart! This girl does love to snuggle - every morning and upon waking up from every nap, she takes about 5 minutes to snuggle/wake up.

This past weekend, Gramma Kathy and Papa came to town for a visit. We played outside, went to an indoor park (on the rainy day), sang songs, danced, and shopped. We also had our picture taken... with some tummy exposure ;) ... and as much as it probably could be right now, it's not me.

The indoor play area we went to had a toddler spot for up to 3 year olds, which is where I thought we'd spend most of our time. Wrong. The slides below were right outside the toddler play area and they had Katelyn at hello. Michael worked up a good old fashioned sweat climbing up the maze-like stairs to get to the top of the slide (a million and one times). He arguably loved the slide as much as Katelyn did though!

Someone loves their Papa and watching the Cubs...

It usually takes Katelyn a day or two to get used to getting the names right, and by that I mean, she'll say, "Thank you, Mommy" to Gramma on accident and then laugh and laugh. Or "Bless you, Daddy" after a sneeze by Papa. She also is keenly aware of when someone is not within eyesight and will say, "Where'd Daddy go?" or "What's Gramma Kathy doo-nin'?" 

We closed out the weekend with a finger puppet performance - who doesn't?!

It's been fun to see Katelyn's imagination develop. She likes to play "cookin'" in her kitchen, take special care of her baby doll (appropriately named "Gramma Debbie" since she gave it to her ;) by covering her up with a blankie and rubbing her back (she also has been known to say, "Quiet please, Mommy. Baby sleeping."), and she's been especially fond of her Dora doll and Ernie doll lately asking both of them various questions, "Dora, do you want a ponytail?" or "Do you want to sit on my lap, Ernie?" The characters must reply quickly to her because Katelyn almost immediately responds with "Okay!"

What a joy this little lady is!!

24 Weeks Along

Hello! I'm thinking we're due for a pregnancy update here and a couple pictures of the ever-growing baby bump. A lot of people ask me how this pregnancy compares to Katelyn's and an overarching theme that has surprised me about this pregnancy is just how different it has been. 

Early on there were some basic similarities, but the food cravings and aversions were different. And beginning around week 17, I began to feel some physical differences as well - achy joints, slow to rise from a seated position, waddling instead of walking (already?!) and some pretty intense low back pain (I even had to buy a belly support belt to help alleviate some of it). With Katelyn, I didn't experience any of that until the final few weeks. Physically, this pregnancy seems to be more demanding on me - probably because I'm keeping up with and (at times) toting a toddler in addition to an extra 16 pounds (with plenty more on the way)!

Another noticeable difference is the activity level of this baby - it's doing all sorts of kicking, squirming, nudging, and all-around crazy acrobatics... consistently throughout the day: morning, noon, and night! Katelyn was most active in the mornings (I'd notice her movements during my commutes to work) and right as I'd climb into bed at night. Michael has enjoyed feeling the baby move too - sometimes even seeing my tummy jolt into activity! I love the movement as a steady reminder of the life going on inside me, but I must admit, it does make me wonder if this little one is going to be a high-energy Leo (July 22 - August 22) like Daddy! 

Lastly, I feel a lot bigger much sooner this time around (which is not uncommon, but still surprised me). Some of the maternity clothes I wore with Katelyn are simply out of the question this time around. They're a little too snug or too short to cover this expanding mid-section! 

Given all the differences, Michael and I both think that this little one might be a boy, but I know several people who have had markedly different pregnancies with with same gender, so who knows?! For now, we're simply content and grateful for this wonderful, bouncy, growing blessing, who at 24 weeks is tipping the scale at over a pound and measures about 12 inches long. ♥

Doggie Days

Katelyn has had a real "sibling-like" relationship with Malone lately. She usually wants to pet him, tug ("gently" - which is up for debate) on his tail, rub his belly, and give him kisses, but when he gets too close while she's playing or having a snack, "No, Lone! Go way, Lone!" is the most common warning. But she always greets him with a friendly "Goo mownin', Lone!"when she first comes downstairs each day.

Malone is a good sport and is just pleased when he gets some attention out of the deal.

(Malone's white beard in full effect! When did that crop up? Oh, probably around February 17, 2010;)

And why not one more dog picture to go along with theme? Last Friday we paid a visit to Michael at work and Katelyn loves the big Bullseye mural...

A quick Katelyn story from today... after lunch, she was helping clean up by wiping off the table with a paper towel and asked for my help. I did a couple quick wipes and out of thin air Katelyn said, "I'm so proud of you, Mommy!" and gave me a big hug. We've said and done this many times to her, but never has she said it to one of us. Funny little girl! Thanks for the encouragement, sweet pea :)

Happy Easter!

Hope you all had a nice Easter weekend. I have a beautiful song lingering in my head from church yesterday morning. The lyrics from the chorus are...

Jesus paid it all; all to Him I owe.

Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.

To me, that says everything. As Katelyn says every night after our prayers, "Thank you, Jesus. Amen." Yes, indeed. For your ultimate sacrifice and redemption, Thank you, Jesus. Amen.

In the spirit of new life, the Easter bunny made a visit to our house and Katelyn was thrilled to see what he left for her...

She loved the books, stickers, and stuffed "yellow duck" in her basket.

The grandparents sent her goodies too! Elmo books and an Easter basket with stickers and M&Ms from Gramma Debbie. Stickers, coloring book and gel pens, socks, and an "egg camera" from Gramma Kathy and Papa. Such fun!

 We had scrambled eggs and cinnamon rolls for Easter breakfast. We estimate Katelyn ate about 3 eggs on her own - with all this talk about Easter eggs, it's no surprise she wanted her fill ;)

After breakfast, Katelyn got dolled up in her "pretty dress" from Gramma Debbie. We've been admiring the dress in her closet for a couple weeks now but saved it for this very special day. Thanks, Gramma!

And a quick picture on our way out the door to church. Katelyn was looking so very glam, I just had to get a picture of it! (And Michael is looking quite dapper too :)

After church, the egg hunt commenced. It took Katelyn no time at all to figure out how it all worked. Upon spotting a new egg, she'd say, "Oh, here it is!" or "Oh, dere's anoder one!"

And every egg deserved a good shake!

Some were hidden outside too...

Katelyn was so pleased with her basketful of colorful eggs! Since there were so many gifts and goodies involved, Katelyn kept saying, "my birthday? Kate's birthday?" Not quite, but still a big reason for celebration!

Before digging into the eggs, we had to get a family picture - an Easter tradition for us.

And let the egg opening begin!

The eggs had all kinds of treasures inside! Bouncy balls, hair barrettes, stickers, jewelry, jelly beans, and even some M&Ms! 

Katelyn also got to try the "yellow duck" that she has been eyeing all season. (We joked that until she tasted it and discovered its marshmallow magic, she probably thought it was something for the bathtub since that's where most yellow ducks belong!)

"Hippity, hoppity Easter, everyone!"

We hope you all had a wonderful weekend celebrating with family and friends! We certainly did!

Wild Turkeys and Yellow Ducks

"I don't wanna work, I wanna bang on the drums all day..." It's a common occurrence in the evenings at our house for a dance party to take place. "Let's Rock Elmo" (on the table below) gets things started with some great tunes.

Katelyn especially loves to spin in and out of Daddy's arms :) What better way to wrap up a day?

Yesterday afternoon, it was so nice outside that we decided to dye our Easter eggs on the deck. Katelyn liked seeing all the brightly colored dye options, but was a little confused about what exactly it was for. I think she said, "Mommy, Daddy, drink it" several times!

Another rather puzzling part of the process was "coloring" with the white crayon on a white egg. Hmm...

Ah-ha! And now we see how the magical white crayon works - and what a jaw-dropping discovery it was :) 

This afternoon, our friends came over to play. All day Katelyn said, "Dane come to my house." Followed by, "Erik come?" "Baby Tripp come?" "Shelly come?" "Matt come?" She has quite an impressive memory for who belongs in which family! 

Katelyn simply adores Dane (5) and wants to do everything he does... 

An attempt at getting all 4 kids corralled, looking, and smiling for a picture...

Dane, Erik (almost 3), Katelyn, and "Baby" Tripp (14 months)

A couple quick Katelyn stories to share: We took a walk with Malone this morning and were talking about all kinds of things we could look for while on our walk. According to Katelyn, "We'll see birdies, cats, airplanes, squirrels, and... wild turkeys." (There have been several wild turkey sightings in our neighborhood lately and I spotted one in our neighbor's yard this morning. I mentioned it to Katelyn, but couldn't get her over to the window in time to see it. Apparently that was her motivation to spot one for herself on the walk!)

During a trip to Target over the weekend, Michael decided to do some market research of his own. Since he is the buyer for Easter candy at all stores, he wanted to find out what a midwestern 2-year-old favors. He asked her which item she wanted and she replied with "yellow ducks" - aka, Peeps, which happen to be my all-time favorite Easter candy. She's a girl after my own heart in so many ways! (The same girl also asked for pickles for breakfast this morning! Undoubtedly a child of mine.)

Wishing you a nice week as we approach the triumphant Easter holiday!