Spring Break!

This past week has been so much fun! Bryant had Spring Break and we went down to Orlando to visit the Disney Water Parks - Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach. We drove down on Sunday (the 5th). Bryant and I jumped into the pool while Jeff watched the race.

Monday, we decided to chance going to Typhoon Lagoon even though the forecast called for rain. The wind was blowing and it was a bit chilly when you got out of the water, but it was a blast. Jeff and Bryant hit most of the slides (Bryant chickened out on a couple) and I enjoyed relaxing on a lounge chair and wandering around the park. After lunch, we decided to all join up in the lazy river. Halfway around, it started raining. We jumped out of the tubes we were riding and got in the water until the rain stopped (the rain was cold!!).

The next day was way too cold for water parks (low 60's for the high), so we went to Downtown Disney. We ate lunch at a really good Italian place there and saw "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" at the theater. Bryant laughed through the whole thing. Then we hit the Lego store. It was PACKED!!! You couldn't move without bumping into someone. But no one seemed to mind. There's an entire wall of bins of loose Legos - all sizes, shapes, and colors - and you can fill a cup with whatever you want (for a price, of course). Jeff and Bryant took their time picking and choosing. When we got back to the hotel, I sorted, then counted how many they were able to get into a cup (think large McDonald's cup size). It was almost 1000!!! Of course, more than 150 of them were tiny jewels that Bryant HAD to get.

Wednesday was a bit warmer and promised to get into the low 70's, so we decided to chance visiting Blizzard Beach. It was literally high 40's, low 50's when we walked in the entrance gate at 9:30. We spent the morning wandering the park and taking pictures. The afternoon warmed up enough for my two brave boys to try a few slides before we tried the lazy river. It was SO cold!!! Especially when water sprayed on us. We didn't make it all the way around before I insisted we get out. BRRRRR!!!!!

We went back to Typhoon Lagoon on Thursday. (We bought annual passes, since it cost the same as a two-day pass.) The weather was MUCH nicer and the crowds showed it. Every single chair and lounge was claimed by 11 am. It was a very good thing we arrived just as the gates opened. We claimed a great spot in the shade. The lines for the slides were long and the lazy river was very crowded. We left early, tired and satisfied with our experience. What an awesome week.

Easter was pretty low key for us. The Easter Bunny came and left lots of M&M's, money, and some Bakugan (with cards!) for Bryant. We relaxed most of the day, just chillin'. Dinner was a bit late, since we didn't realize a lamb roast takes about 2-3 hours to cook. Good thing there's no school until Tuesday.

Little baby boy is doing very well. I swear this kid never stops kicking. Bryant likes to lean his head against my tummy so his brother can kid him in the head. He gets such a kick (pun intended) out of it! The doctor says he's doing extremely well and is very healthy. Every time we get an ultrasound done, my due date moves up. It's now tentatively August 7th. I don't want this baby to be big. Please, please, please, not a big baby! I have another appointment tomorrow morning. Bryant is going with me. I'm excited for him to be able to hear the heartbeat. As for a name...we haven't made a final decision. Until we do, you'll just have to be in suspense. Bwah-ha-ha! I mean, uh...darn.

We're in the middle of a major decluttering/purging spree. No closet, drawer, or shelf will be spared. We are getting rid of tons of stuff we just don't need or use. We're hoping to get it done by the end of the month. It's very cleansing, not just for the house, but for the soul. It's amazing how much the mind clears when you clear out the clutter.

ATTENTION FAMILY: Late June or July of next year (2010), we're planning on driving out for a couple of weeks. Instead of meeting at homes, we would love to do a reunion of sorts at Yellowstone. We're giving everyone lots of notice to enable proper planning and maximum attendance. Feedback would be wonderful.

It's a Boy!

That's right, the ultrasound showed we're expecting another boy. Bryant is thrilled to be getting a brother. He's already been talking about what he'll teach him.
Yesterday was our nine-year anniversary. It was a pretty good day. The weather was absolutely perfect - mild and sunny in the morning and warm enough to wash both vehicles by the afternoon. Jeff took the day off. After my appointment in the morning, we went to Sears and lo and behold, the crib we had priced only weeks before was on sale! That plus a $50 gift cheque from Fidelity (for joining the Healthy Baby Program through our health insurance), we were able to get it for a steal. Only one more big-ticket item to get (a car seat/stroller travel system). Hopefully we'll get that for a good deal, too.
For lunch, we went to Olive Garden and had the best service I think we've ever had at a restaurant. The food was really, really good, too. All in all, it was one of the best anniversaries we've ever had.

Hot, hot, hot!

It is nice and toasty today - 82 degrees. No coats for us. I bought plants today for our yard. Bryant comes home, does his homework, then he's outside until we call him home for dinner. Beautiful, beautiful weather!

Valentine's Day weekend was as backwoods as you could get. We stayed in an RV park where the permanent residents read like characters from a book. I couldn't have made them up in a million years. They were strange and widely varied and I loved it. I really wanted to stay longer and learn their stories. Jeff took Bryant fishing on a small motorboat on this lake that was never any more than three feet deep. It was too shallow to use the motor near the dock, so Jeff had to paddle out to deeper water. They didn't catch anything, but they saw bald eagles all over the place. The RV park owners suggested they use live bait - minnows - and when the boys got back, Bryant boasted he 'caught' a fish. With his hands. In the styrofoam bucket of minnows. Ewwww! Bryant loved it so much, he came home and told everyone who would listen about it.

For lunch, we drove past the only restaurant listed on the website and determined the drive to Gainesville wasn't too far after all. The building looked like a soft breeze would knock it over. After we ate, the boys went back out on the lake and I took some much needed quiet time. I also met pretty much everyone who lived there while sitting around the firepit. They were some of the most colorful people I've ever met. So, while it wasn't the most romantic weekend we've ever had, it was a lot of fun.

On a sad note - we decided to find Chipper a new home. Fortunately, we found a really nice family who are active enough to keep up with him. Bryant was upset at first, but he now agrees it probably was a good decision. I'm not missing the dog hair and whining and picking up doggy messes. My house is quiet again.

Tomorrow is another ultrasound. Hopefully we find out what we're having!

Ultrasound pic!

Here's our little munchkin at about 12 weeks. They've moved my due date up to August 8th because the baby is bigger than they were expecting. We've also got video, but posting that is a little beyond my skill right now. Bryant loved watching the baby move around. He actually insisted the other day that the baby sleep in his room. I persuaded him otherwise.
Morning sickness has finally passed, for the most part. I'm still a little queasy every so often, not nothing like I was. I've got more energy and can finally get off that darn couch! Of course, my emotions are in high gear.
We bought a play pen on Saturday. It's so cute! We were originally going to get a very basic one because we're cheap and there's a lot we have to get. But lo and behold, as we were perusing Sears, we found a Winnie the Pooh one with all the bells and whistles for the same price as the basic ones we've been pricing. It comes with a bassinet, changing station, mobile, and hanging storage. It's set up in our livingroom right now. I just don't want to take it down right now.
We've decided on a color scheme for the baby's room. Bryant's room is in red and gold, so the baby (boy or girl) will have blue and silver. It's a nice, neutral backdrop for the Winnie the Pooh accents we'll be using.
The next ultrasound is in four weeks, on our anniversary. We're pretty sure we'll be able to find out what we're having. My friends keep asking me if we know yet because they keep finding the cutest baby things on sale. I just want to know so I can start putting things together and washing the baby clothes we actually kept.
And now for the weather... it's cool. It's been really cold the past week. Below freezing temps at night and only reaching the 40's or 50's in the afternoon. Today I was finally able to wear sandals to the bus stop again. My poor fruit 'bushes' didn't fare so well, though. We forgot to cover them and now they're brown and dying. Just like the rest of our yard. Hopefully, with a little TLC and warmer weather, we'll get it back to where it needs to be.

Bryant earned an award at school for showing respect to his fellow students. He was handpicked by his teacher. We attended an award ceremony and watched the principal present Bryant the award. Along with the award, he received a gift certificate to Sonny's Barbecue. We took him to dinner that night to reward him and gave him a Nintendo DS accessories kit that included a carrying case, car charger, cases for his games, screen protectors, and a few other little things. We're very proud of him.



Jeff kept very busy over a three-day weekend last month. He got very ambitious and painted our livingroom (light yellow), kitchen (light green), and family room (light blue). We love the colors. And the best part is I can actually scrub the walls now - hurray! Jeff had to do some fancy footwork to reach some of the more inconvenient places. I wasn't able to do much to help, so he did the majority of the work alone. Everyone is impressed by how clean his lines were and I was even asked if we had it done professionally. It looks great. Now I have a million things to hang back up on the walls and I have no idea where I want to put everything.
It's a long weekend for us and we'll be enjoying the nice weather in our fifth wheel. Jeff found a place not too far from here that promises to either be extremely backwoods or pretty good or both. We'll be having Valentine's dinner at the only restaurant listed on the website (no pictures). It'll be an experience, to say the least. Fun, fun, fun!

It's Still Warm Here!

I was looking at photos of kids in the snow and laughed because Bryant went to school this morning in shorts and a t-shirt. We're enjoying the weather. Jeff now plays tennis every Thursday evening at the amenities center with one of our neighbors. Bryant spends all day, every day outside. I hardly see him some days.Besides that, we're living life and trying to wrap our minds around the fact we're finally having another kid. Bryant really wants a brother and refers to the baby as "him". I asked him "What if it's a girl?" and he told me he didn't know what he would do. He's so excited. I've been telling him stories about when he was a baby and he just grins when I tell him how all over the place he was. Darn kid.I'll be having my first ultrasound this Monday to confirm we're only having one. A friend, who has twins of her own, keeps hinting she thinks we might be having twins. I don't even want to think about that possibility right now. I'm not all that sick anymore, just hungry all the time. And very tired. I have to make sure I take a nap before Bryant gets home so I can make it the rest of the day. Especially for piano lessons.I'm officially 10 weeks along and my jeans are no longer comfortable. Which really stinks because for Christmas, I asked my parents for a gift card to Eddie Bauer to buy jeans that fit me really well. That didn't work out. Speaking of Christmas, ours was pretty good. No snow. We have had fog, though. Bryant finally got his coveted Nintendo DS along with a Pokemon game. He takes it everywhere. I love that it has a headphone jack. I don't have to hear it. I got new dishes and flatware. LOVE THEM!!! Jeff got a table saw and scroll saw. He spends so much more time out in the garage than I've ever seen him do. He spent hours cleaning it up to make room for his new toys. Then he made trophies for the Pinewood Derby and one to take to work. They look amazing. He literally spends most of the day out there making stuff. I've started a nice list of projects for him. We harvested our first orange off our orange tree (bush). It was so good. We were disappointed there was only one, but we can't expect much from a tree that only reaches our knees.No photos today. I'm rapidly running out of steam and am extremely hungry all of a sudden. I'll post some later.

Surprise!

We have some great news! Bryant is finally going to be a big brother! When I found out, I nearly fell on the floor. We had pretty much figured one kid was all we were going to get. We're still in shock, especially since I haven't been pregnant in eight years. Yikes. We got rid of most of our baby stuff a couple of years ago, so we're starting from scratch again. Morning sickness is hitting me hard. It wasn't this bad with Bryant. Our plans have all been changed, too. No more LASIK for me this summer. No cross-country road trip to Utah in late July-early August. That's when I'm due. Plus, every bit of extra money will be going toward preparing for baby. Thank goodness for tax returns!

Halloween

October has come and gone and so has our spooky holiday. Bryant was Indiana Jones. He looked great. I made a canvas goodie bag and Jeff made a leather whip for him to carry. The whip was confiscated soon afterwards. I guess we should have realized whips and seven-year-old boys don't mix. The streets were filled with trick-or-treaters - many of them without jackets, since the temperature didn't go below mid-sixties. As usual, Bryant and I went out while Jeff stayed home and handed out candy. We were gone for over two hours. At the end, Bryant was complaining about sore feet, but we had a lot of fun. The neighbors here love to go over the top with decorations. Even the spiders joined in the fun - see the photo? That was from the tree in our front yard!