Loving the sun...and then some rain came!

Now that the Spring weather is slowly making it's way on the scene, we've started our nightly walks. 

Maddie puts on her bathing suit as much as she can.

 Madeline was walking around barefoot so she got some pebbles/dirt on the bottom of her feet. Since she obsessives over cleanliness this really bothered her. She pouted, "I've got dirt on my feet, daddy," Chris said, "That's ok, sometimes you will get dirty." She stood up and stomped, "DADDY, DIRT IS NOT FUNNY!" Then we had to wash her feet before she would play again.  (Then we put on her crocs).

All of the sunshine brought a little rain so we spent Sunday morning playing dress-up.

(Blurry due to the twirling).

When it was time to get out for a few errands, Maddie insisted on wearing her skirt. 

 I always wondered at what age that started. It's two. Two is when they demand to go shopping looking like a fairy princess.

We had an impromptu lunch with Hudson!

We celebrated Cinco de Mayo with my taco-loving family.

Hmm. When I look at this picture, I realize I still have on my pj pants. I actually hosted a small dinner wearing pajamas. Whoops. Baby brain. (Although, my family didn't say anything. Must have thought it was normal.)

 It was pretty easy to get my dad in the house....not as easy getting him out!

Today, I'm 19 weeks! Just one week away from making it halfway through this pregnancy!! 

Derby Parade and a Play Date!

This weekend, we headed to Gattiland for a fun evening of pizza and games. We chose Gattiland over Chuck E Cheese to try something new. (Translation: I had a coupon.) It was way too old for Madeline. There was not many things for her age, so we rode the carousel twice and taught her how to play skee-ball.

So proud of her tickets!!

Daddy and I (and my sister) did a campfire and had our first smore's of the season. 

Love sitting out by the fire with my boo! 

I had a genius idea to make banana bread. I thought Madeline would love squeezing the bananas. Turns out, she just wanted to eat them.

 Playing peek a boo at the park!

Today was the Derby Parade at Madeline's school. It was HILARIOUS. Each classroom represented a different Derby event/theme. Maddie's class was Thunder over Louisville and each kid was dressed up like a firecracker, carrying signs that said, "Pow" "Boom" and "Whoa."

It was a little overwhelming for the kiddos, honestly. When they walked outside there were about 75 parents cheering for them. Most kids ran to their parents (including mine.) But it sure was CUTE!! Here's a few of my faves.

 The Chow Wagon

 Millionaire's Row

 Run for the Rose (modified for the U-21 crowd)

 The Great Balloon Race

 The Royal Court

 The marathoners

AND!! My little firecracker!

 I didn't get many pictures because I was walking in the parade with her. Chris got a great little video, but I cannot get it uploaded. So...just take my word for it: she was a cute firework!

THEN! Maddie's classmate, Stella, came over for a play date! Maddie and Stella are not even 2 weeks apart and they have been at Star in the same class 3 out of 4 times! They are currently in the 2 year old class together. They are about the same size and pretty similar in character/nature. 

 They sang in the wagon at the top of their lungs and laughed and laughed!

This isn't a great picture of Madeline....but she LOOKS SO MUCH LIKE HER DADDY HERE! When Chris was younger, he had white blonde hair and bright blue eyes. When I look at this picture, I see Chris when he was that age.

You know, I always assumed I'd have brunette children. (Before I realized Chris obviously has super-dominant genes.) But...I sure do my love my little blondie!! 

Small, but mighty.

Maddie never ceases to amaze me. She's one of the smallest two year olds I know, but at the same time, she's one of the mightiest. (With one of the biggest personalities!)

We went to CFA Kids Night on Thursday and she loved it! I tried to take her to the toddler zone while we waited for daddy, but she was having none of it. She climbed right up in the play place with the rest of the big kids and made her way through.

After playing and a visit with the cow, she ate a happy meal and had a treat.

Daddy took us to Cabela's (his new sanctuary. I get it. It's how I feel in the Macy's 'home' section and how Maddie feels in PB Kids.) where Maddie and I hung out by the fish tank.

We went to Beard's to fix the lawnmower.

I thought she'd be content on the rocker, but she sat on the tractor, and immediately turned the wheel. It didn't move so she looked up and said, "Hey mommy, I need the key." Like I would let her take a spin on that thing.

After Beard's we stopped at All about Kids for an hour. Maddie played HARD. She never stopped running. I asked her to wait for daddy to go up the big slide since I couldn't go. She looked at me and sighed, "I'll just go myself." Just last month I had to carry her up this ladder, and now she's doing it on her own!

This picture cracks me up. This is literally what she looked like while we were there. 

She was sweating and out of breath by the time I caught her, an hour later. 

Then, Chris and I went to a baby shower to celebrate with our good friends Jacob and Liz. They are expecting their first, a boy. We are so excited for them!

While we were gone, Madeline stayed at home with our friend Tara. She told Tara TWICE, "Mommy said I can do whatever I want." Where does she learn that? What I actually said was, "Maddie, daddy and I are leaving. Please listen to Tara. No whining. Have fun! I love you." Evidently, she hears what she wants. We are grateful for having such a sweet friend who loves Maddie so much!

But, who doesn't love this face??

Bumpdate: 17 weeks!

I finally took a bump picture so I thought it might be time for a bump date. 

How far along? 17 weeks 

Baby is the size of: Onion!

Maternity Clothes? I am still wearing my regular jeans, but have started to wear looser, larger tops. I did get out all of my maternity clothes and washed them so I'm all set for the day I cannot button my jeans! 

Stretch Marks? None that I can see. I have been putting on cream regularly though!

Sleep? So-so. I wake up every night to go to the bathroom and sometimes have some crazy weird, vivid dreams. 

Movement? I have actually felt a few flutters this week!

Cravings? Red wine (sad face.) Also, sour patch kids and toaster strudels. Oh, and any kind of cookie. All in moderation, right?! 

Gender? We find out in less than 3 weeks! Because this pregnancy is so different from the first one, I really think it has to be a boy. But, something has been telling me girl....either way, I think I will be really surprised. And, really happy!!

Belly Button In or Out? In.

What I miss: Sleeping through the night, eating without gagging, wearing jeans without having a muffin top.

Symptoms: Actually, this pregnancy has been much easier considering I'm not vomiting nearly as much. I do, however, get random bouts of metal mouth (dysgeusia), and I'm going to the bathroom every 27 minutes. (I thought that didn't happen until later???) I am constantly hungry, but then feel "full" after only eating about half as much as normal. So, basically, I'm just snacking through the day. Fruit, yogurt, pretzels, peanuts, etc, etc.

Best moment of the week? Starting to feel a little movement. I am so so excited to really feel the kicks! 

What I am looking forward to: Knowing the gender! We have a lot to do to get the baby's room prepared and I think I will be much more motivated once I know if baby H is a boy or girl! We need to totally clean out the nursery and then move all of the baby furniture in. Choosing paint, choosing bedding, hanging closet shelves, buying a whole new wardrobe if it's a boy....augh! I'm stressing myself out so I'll stop.

Depending on what I wear, I can look pregnant or not pregnant. For example, here's what I wore to work today.

And, here I am, 5 minutes later, in a tank top. (Many neighbors drove by while we were taking these. They had to think we were nuts as I stood outside in 40 degrees in a tank top!)

For comparison sake, the below is me at 19 weeks with Madeline. I like to take my bump pictures in the same outfit so I can really compare. :)

          17 weeks--pregnancy 2                                                                        19 weeks - pregnancy 1

The only thing I can think of when I see this is that I am in desperate need of a tan. Please, summer, I am BEGGING you. It is TIME.

In Maddie - news, the transition to "big girl" bed is going OK. She is still moving around A LOT. One night she even fell out of her bed but managed to stay asleep on the floor. (We put her back in.) She is also jumping all over the place. She recently learned to jump and thinks she has to hop everywhere. Next week, she is in a derby parade at school where she is dressing up like a firecracker. Pretty fitting! I cannot wait to see her marching in the parade. She has been asking to go back to gymnastics so I need to get her enrolled soon. 

Time for this mama to settle in for some Survivor! Happy Wednesday!

Earth Day at the Zoo

My friends and I made a mistake today. We're all zoo members and somehow we ALL missed the memo that today was $2 admission to the zoo in honor of Earth Day. It was a total MADHOUSE. What we thought would be a slightly-crowded afternoon turned into sheer chaos. This made for some great people animal-watching.

To be honest, we didn't spend as much time with the animals as usual, but we did get to see Maddie's faves: the giraffe and gorillas. We also did the carousel (of course!) and basically let Madeline run wild.

I was nervous b/c she took an 8 minute (count it, because I know I did) nap so I fully expected some type of major melt-down. She was actually pretty perfect. Her and Hudson were by far the two best behaved children we saw at the entire zoo. I witnessed enough temper tantrums to make me seriously consider permanent birth control.

 Maddie's face when she realized her horse went up and down (normally we are on the stable ones.)

The boys eating soft-serve.

Which then meant they needed to rest. Mind you, none are pregnant, pushing a stroller or pulling a wagon....but they still needed to rest!

 Maddie's preferred way to see the zoo!

 Madeline somehow got our friends to line up so she could go through their legs. She thought this was hilarious!

The gang. The boys were all roommates in college and they are still some of our closest friends! 

Goodbye my boyfriend! Until we meet again!