The Stone Museum

Happy Birthday Oli

My little Oli is five! It seems unbelievable that he has wandered into big boy territory! To celebrate, we went to the Please Touch Museum in Philadelphia. The kids love it here and it is a great place for accessibility. This was Oli's first time here in his wheelchair and he got around very easily.

Good Stuff!

One of the things that I haven't liked about moving to PA is that we are farther away from the shore. As a family, we love the beach, and enjoyed being less than 40 minutes away. But this week, thanks to my parents, we got to spend the whole week down at the shore! It was a great week, complete with family, food, and swimming. Anytime all of us get together, it is fun, and this year was no exception. Here are some of the highlights.

 Oli and Mac were fish in the pool! My parents had a beach house next to our motel, but rented a room for us in the motel so that we could have the pool. It was great. We found great floaties for Oliver, and for the first time, he was able to float and swim on his own. Of course, we were right next to him, but he was able to play on his own. It was great! Meanwhile, Mac was jumping in and swimming underwater by the end of the week.

 On a rainy afternoon, Aunt Krysie did some artwork with the kids. I'm not sure who started it (Mac, I think) but when I came back out to the porch, all three had creepy Texas Chain Saw Massacre style masks. But at least they were having fun...

 One of the best parts of being at Point Pleasant was being able to see my grandma and Aunt Patti. We always love our visits!

 Being with family is always the best part. Here is half of our party up ahead, while the rest of us lagged behind. We were on our way to Martells (so bad, but so good).

 After dinner, we won big! We never, ever win like this. It was almost a catastrophe when we had only one stuffed animal, but two well-aimed ball throws later, we had four more animals. Plus, the two each that we had one the day before. We came home rich in stuffies!

Rides were a big part of our trip. There were two unlimited ride wrist band days, and we took full advantage. This was the first year that Mac was big enough to ride the older rids, but Oli could only ride kid rides. While that created some problems, since Oli is super attached to Mac right now (they fought it on the way home about whether or not they were best friends). But they could both ride the big swings, as long as Oli had an adult with him. If you look closely, you can see my mom and Oli on the swings.

We also celebrated my mom's birthday and spent a lot of fun time in the ocean. Of course, Mac always wants to go deeper in the waves, and Oli and I stayed sitting at the shoreline getting "toe kisses" from the ocean.

The day after we got home was the beginning of my third trimester! Definitely good stuff!

Big News

So, again, it has been a while. But I return with big news -- we are having a baby!

Part of my reluctance to post has been a reluctance to share the news, but there have been so many things that I have wanted to post about over the last few months that I figured I had better come clean so that I can resume posting overall. I am 26 weeks, and due October 28. We are having a boy. I could not ask for any more :)

I have been an absolute nervous wreck, and this pregnancy has revealed to me (among other things), that I have no sense of intuition, just blind panic that overrides reason. I cannot even list here the entire spectrum of maladies that I have been afraid of encountering over the last few months (everything from Listeria to botulism), but suffice it to say, my nerves have been in overdrive. The only thing that sometimes brings me back to reality is the fact that even I have to admit that it is highly unlikely that I could encounter listeria, botulism, and placental abruption all within one week (although you never really know, do you?). Although I have never been known for being cool or laid back, this worry really is a new level. I am hoping that it is pregnancy hormones, and that a) isn't really me, and that b) I will go back to pre-pregnancy levels of anxiety once I deliver. I'm also hoping that if it is hormonally induced, that it isn't a harbinger of post-partum depression (something I have been lucky enough to avoid thus far). But see, there I go worrying again...

So, overall, things are great. The kids are enjoying the summer, and b/c Tim sold the karate school in May, he has been around to help out. This is especially important, b/c Oli needs to be lifted a lot and I just can't do it. We are trying to decide if he will stay home or get a part-time job while he looks into opening a local school for early next year. More on that another time. For now, I am really enjoying his company.

Here is a picture of me -- the first official "bump" picture of my pregnancy, although I have been captured in a few other photographs over the last few months. I think it is from @ a week ago, at 25 weeks.

All in all, I am big, this news is big, and I wouldn't have it any other way :)

Happy Birthday, My Mackensie!

It seems hard to believe, but our little Mackensie is seven years old! She has evolved into a smart, sweet, and amazing girl. I am so proud of her. She has a great imagination, and can lose herself in play or books. She reads chapter books on her own now, which is amazing. Her favorite show is iCarly, she still loves barbies, and plays with squinkies, LaLa Loopsie dolls, and littlest pet shop. Like me, she loves little or intricately detailed toys. I get so much of what she likes to play, because I was the same way. And this girl always has a plan.

It is hard for me to even remember her as a baby, even though it wasn't that long ago. Here she is the day she came home from the hospital

She was always spirited, although we had no idea what was to come. Here is a picture of her on a trip to Disney when she was 2:

and one of her first times holding her brother:

at the beginning of kindergarten:

and as a mature first grader:

and now as a big 7 year old:

In keeping with our tradition of the last few years, we let Mac choose where she wanted to go for her birthday. She chose Cheeseburger in Paradise, the Jimmy Buffet inspired restaurant. I wasn't sure what this said about our parenting skills, until we showed up and there were kids everywhere. We had a great dinner. Mac also got to pick her present. She got a LaLa Loopsie little sister doll, and a huge set of  LaLa Loopsie pencil toppers. It was weird, but at Toys R Us, I could tell that all of the toys didn't hold the same appeal. Even though she is only seven, she might be heading away from "kid" and closer to the dreaded "tween." I will do everything in my power to keep her a "kid" as long as possible!

In direct juxtaposition to that last sentence, she is having a party next week at Sweet & Sassy. Because we weren't really sure of the friend situation in PA, and she has wanted a Sweet & Sassy party for about 6 or 7 months, we decided to let her take her best friend from dance, Adriana, to Sweet & Sassy. Like cheer funk, the dance class that I was overruled on, this party falls outside of my comfort zone, but directly into Mac's interests. I think she is going to have a great time. And I have to admit that even I would love a scent spritz in my hair once in a while.

I guess it is all part of growing up. And she is doing a great job!