36 weeks and some outdoor fun

When I really think about being 36 weeks pregnant, I just simply cannot believe two things.  #1- how much time flies and #2- that this baby girl is still cooking in there!  Ha!  I certainly never thought I'd make it this far with her.  I have never carried a child over 4 pounds, and let me tell you...there is a big difference!  This girl is over 6lbs now, and I can feel the difference!  It is not easy lugging around that extra weight!  Ha!  

Some random things I've been noticing as things progress...

1.  I get full super fast!  I am not nearly as hungry as I was last trimester, and I still crave sweets!  If I could just live on them I'd be good to go!  Ha!  I have no desire to eat anything healthy or even meals, because I just fill up after a couple bites anyway.

2.  I bump into the kitchen counter when I am at the sink or trying to cook, etc.  It is like I can't quite get close enough anymore!  Guess it's time for Craig to start cooking and doing dishes!  Ha!

3.  I have never been this pregnant before, so I never got to experience the movements like I have been.  I will sit at night and just watch my belly and sometimes it makes me laugh out loud.  My whole belly moves and shifts around and in certain spots it is harder than a rock!  It is so fun to watch her move.  Andrew gets a kick out of it too!

4.  I am in a major nesting phase.  I am constantly looking for things to get done and I feel like I have to have every single thing done and accounted for before she comes.  (Like for some reason, once she's here I'll no longer be able to do anything!)

5.  I am finalizing the nursery, and it has been the most fun thing for me (that and the clothes shopping!)  I spent over 2 hours in Hobby Lobby the other day, just dinking around every aisle and finding a million ideas and things to put finishing touches on her room.  I can't wait to get it all put together and post pics!

6.  I have been having fun compiling all my belly shots and seeing the growth of baby girl.  I have taken a picture every month so far, and I cannot believe that I am now on the last picture.  The last picture will be taken on July 11, the day before our scheduled c-section.  I will be 39 weeks.  We scheduled our c-section for July 12th, as close as we could get to Ga Ga's birthday with my doctor being on call.  Unfortunately they won't schedule them on Saturdays (which is her actual birthday).  We are scheduling this one because I have already had one with Andrew, and quite frankly, after being hospitalized for contractions at 31 weeks, I can honestly say I made my decision to have another one when I felt how painful they were!  That was enough of that!  Ha!  So, unless baby girl decides to come on her own before then, July 12th will be her birthday.  She and Ga Ga will always get to celebrate together.  My mom is so excited for her birthday gift this year!

In big brother news... he hit a major milestone!!!!  He finally learned to PEDAL!!!!!!!

We have been working on this for two years!  

We decided it was time to get him a "real" big boy bike with pedals in the right place (not on the front wheel like his old one) so the only way he can ride it is to pedal- he can't touch the ground on this one!

He was so cute helping daddy put together his special McQueen bike.  He was so excited! (Although I think he might cry when he sees his Thomas bike go on sale this weekend at our garage sale!)

Daddy took  him out to practice, and he just flew right up the sidewalk!

He figured out that if you push back on the pedals, you stop.  He sometimes has trouble keeping his legs going forward,

But daddy did a good job helping him figure it out!

Just a little more practice and he'll be a pro.  He gets better every time he rides it now.  He goes a little farther on his own.  The trick for him is getting the momentum going and staying at that speed.  His favorite thing is to fly down the driveway and give mommy a heart attack!  Ha!

One night my mom came to watch him and he rode for her to show off his new skills!  When we got home, this is what I found!  Ha!  They were relaxing after a long evening bike ride!

This just cracks me up too.  He got these skates for his birthday when he was about 2, and I have kept them in the basement until I thought he'd be ready for them.  Well, we were down there organizing for the garage sale and he found them.

Insisted on putting everything on, including the knee and elbow pads!

He was a little unsteady, but he got the hang of it, and now it is all he wants to do!

Even after a few falls on his bum!

I just thought he looked so funny and cute in all his gear!  Ha!

Another afternoon I was putting away dishes and I came around the corner to see what he was doing.  Do you see a pattern here?

He was sorting all his dinosaurs into groups!  I couldn't believe it (which is why I took a picture, of course!)  He put all the same kinds of dinosaurs together.  I was quite impressed!  Ha!  Then he was pretending they were going to school and coming back home to their "family."

Some fun in the tub!  He loves putting bubbles on his head, especially after I rinse his hair out!  He thinks he is just hilarious!

I just had to post his big boy school pictures too!  We got them towards the end of school and I think he just looks like such a big boy.

This one is my favorite.  He just looks so sweet and innocent... Ha!

I am working on catching up on updates- we had an awesome Heartwalk this past weekend, and also celebrated Father's Day and our Anniversary!  It has been such a busy time, but so fun.  I will post again soon with all the latest activities!

Wisconsin Dells- Part 2

Our second day at the Dells began with the absolute best breakfast I have had in a LONG time!

We went to Paul Bunyan's Cook Shanty!  All the food is served family style.  They brought out huge platters of delicious pancakes, potatoes, eggs, sausage, and homemade sugar donuts that were to die for! (And you can't visit without seeing the blue ox!  Ha!)

Daddy and Andrew got matching Ox hats!  I wish I would have taken a picture of the food.  It would make you all hungry!  Trust me!

Our family by the statue of Paul Bunyan.  Do you think this was his real size?

Andrew and Landon

These are our friends, The Grylls'.  We had such a great time spending our vacation with them!

After Paul Bunyan's we headed back to our hotel where you can catch a ride on the famous Wisconsin Ducks!  It is a truck and a boat, and goes in water and on land.  Andrew was fascinated with this.

While we were waiting for our ride, we killed some time in the gift shop again!  My crazy boys had a blast playing with the guns and big hats!

This picture just cracks me up!  He reminds me of Ralphie from my favorite Christmas movie!  Haha!

When it was time to ride the duck boat, we just had a great time.  It was close to an hour long ride!  The boat goes from land and splashes into the water fast!  It was so fun, Andrew loved it!

It was so convenient because the boat just picked us up and dropped us off right outside our hotel!

After our ride we headed to another waterpark within our hotel- this time an outdoor one!  Andrew crawled on this slide so fast that went from one pool to another, and we were hot on his heels when we realized he couldn't touch bottom at the end of the slide!  I was standing on the ledge, freaking out, ready to jump in, screaming at Craig "He can't touch!  He can't touch!"  Craig was right behind him on the slide, and Andrew didn't seem to mind a bit when he hit the water!  This kid has NO FEAR at all!  Luckily daddy caught him and he'd only been underwater for a second.  Again, not scared at all!

This was the neatest lazy river- you could ride up on this conveyor belt to the top and then ride down a waterslide!  This was even one that I got in on (sorry, no pictures of that!  Ha!)

Andrew loved this as well.  Anything water related and slide related, he is all over it!

This picture makes me laugh because it is so good of Andrew and Craig but they are the only ones in the picture under the shadows of the bridge!  Ha!

Andrew got a little nap in the sun!  He was actually just cold- the weather was beautiful, but it wasn't super hot outside, so the water was a little chilly.

All the waterparks had different themes- this one was a dinosaur theme, which Andrew loved.

Coming down another waterslide.  He just couldn't get enough of this!

We had to take a lunch break, so Andrew warmed up in the sun!

I loved these little kiddie sized lawn chairs!  Too cute!

Daddy had to get in on the fun!  Craig is like a big kid at heart- he loves this stuff!  Being a daddy suits him so well!  He was entertaining Landon and Andrew, every time the bucket would drop he would stand under it and act like he was falling down, the boys just laughed and laughed at him.

That night after a great dinner at Monk's (where they serve the kids meals on a frisbee!) we headed to the Big Sky Drive In Theater!  Yes, one still exists!  It was so fun.  When I was a kid we used to go to the drive in every summer at the lake, but then it closed, along with many others.  I'm sure soon they will be a thing of the past, but I was so glad we got to take Andrew to one!

And our van makes a perfect drive in car!  The third row seats flip backwards so you can sit in the back! Love it!  The boys got their jammies on, we got plenty of snacks and everyone curled up and watched Kung Fu Panda 2.  The boys were loving it!

On our last day, we visited another waterpark in our resort, this time an indoor one, since it was pretty chilly outside.  This one also had super fun slides and a neat indoor playground.

Daddy could go with Andrew on these slides, since they were a little bigger. (Thank goodness!)

This is such a funny story.  The boys were all excited because they found this really fun slide where you ride in a raft.  They flew up the stairs as I began to read the sign... "twists and turns, life jackets recommended for kids under 48in, no one with heart conditions, no pregnant women, blah blah blah" that was enough for me!  I am trying to flag them down but with no success.  There went my tiny, shrimpy four year old, with no life jacket on... not to mention a heart condition!  Ahhhhh!  As other people came down, you could hear them screaming from inside the slide.  I was a nervous wreck waiting for them to come down.  Pretty soon they come flying out of the slide, Andrew grinning from ear to ear, asking daddy to do it AGAIN!

I didn't catch a picture of his smile (I was too nervous to do much picture taking!) but trust me, he loved it!  Craig was just cracking up.  My little dare devils!

After another fun morning of swimming, we had to get ready and pack up to head back home.  Before we left we stopped for lunch at this fun place where they serve your meals by train!

The boys could not have been any more excited.  This was right up Andrew's alley!

One of the trains even had bubbles blowing out of it!  It was definitely a unique dining experience!

Andrew was so funny, they would put little toys on the train if there was no food to deliver.  He was again obsessed with this gun!  The kids weren't supposed to touch the train or toys, but Andrew was VERY tempted!  He just would reach out and point to it and say he wanted it!  Ha!  

Daddy found a super cool gas station with a giant dinosaur outside.  Also a big hit with the boys!

And you just can't leave Wisconsin without a giant cheese hat!  Ha!

We had the best time- it was so fun to visit the Dells again, as I hadn't been there in such a long time.  It was definitely a family friendly atmosphere and a great place to go with friends as well.  We enjoyed our last vacation as a family of three!  I must say I am starting to get a little emotional thinking that after 4 1/2 years, Andrew is no longer going to be our only child.  I just can't believe how fast time goes and that he is finally ready to be a big brother.  Our next vacation we'll have baby sister... and we can't wait to make more memories together!