Easter Morning

Ben's Throne

Ben loves the idea of sitting on the couch or a chair like a big boy now. We used to have this little wicker chair in his room, but now that he can climb into it on his own we thought it would be fun for him to have his own chair in the living room. He sits in it like it is his throne (and apparently he is wearing the Emporer's New Suit!)

BTW he only LOOKS like he has a unibrow in pictures. He does NOT have a unibrow!

Here he is being a daredevil.....he is NOT allowed to stand on the chair (or any furniture for that matter), but it was allowed here for the sake of a photo op. We don't recommend you try this at home!

Self Feeding

Ben, being the good little fellow he is, still lets me feed him with a spoon, but lately he has gotten a little annoyed or refused to eat. I had figured that as long as he would let me feed him I would so I knew he was eating a well rounded diet. But then it occurred to me that when the new baby arrives I am not so sure I am going to want be spoon feeding him myself.

So I let him give it a shot tonight when he got annoyed with me feeding him applesauce.

He was somewhat successful in that he did get a few spoonfulls into his mouth...although you would never know it from these videos. And as clean as he looks at this point....the rest of the applesauce was eaten with his hands and lets just say he was stripped down to his diaper before he was allowed to leave the high chair.

PS special cameo appearance by Bunny in the second video :)

Ben Figures It Out

25 Weeks And Counting...

Just thought I would give a little update about Ben, Mom, family, new babe since I have been picture heavy on the blog for several months.

Ben is 14 months old now and has definitely left babyhood for the more challenging toddlerhood!! He has quickly learned to exert his will, how to whine for optimum annoyance, and how to destroy whatever it is he shouldn't be playing with in the first place LOL...he is still a total doll and a joy though. His intellectual development is so interesting to see. He understands what we say, he understands requests, he can "play" jokes, he can communicate. He still eats like a champ with a particular love of meat! Strange huh? He will eat any kind of meat (even enjoyed lamb at Nonno and Nonna's house.....something *I* won't eat LOL). He has a budding obession with cars/vehicles. Is deathly afraid of elephants and vaccums. And would do just about anything to play outside.

I am getting by. This pregnancy has been particularly hard and I have been just taking things one day at a time and trying to stay busy. I am 25 weeks and feel like the next 15 weeks can't go fast enough and yet I feel totally unprepared!! I just took my second and last 1hr. glucose test today. I passed the first with flying colors and expect this one to be the same. The pregnancy itself is going very well and uneventful. I have once a month ultrasounds now and the baby looks perfect and healthy. At my last U/S, two weeks ago, Annabella weighed 1lb 6oz and was measuring perfect for her dates. Next U/S in two weeks. I am hoping she will be roughly the same size as Ben at birth. I have just about all the clothes a newborn little girl could possible want thanks to some sales, a thrift store and my very generous sister-in-law who past on all of my nieces clothes!

Claudio has been a heroic husband dealing with a crazy pregnant lady!! LOL...He is gearing up for gardening. He has a heap of various seeds sprouting in our basement and yard and our water barrels set up to collect rainwater. He survived a few rounds of layoffs at his company and we are praying that the layoffs are done now.

So You Think You Can Dance?

Deep in Conversation

A Day At The Park

A few weekends ago we had a beautiful Sunday and Grandma was visiting with us so we decided to take a trip to the park.


Ben loves the swings!

I am so grateful for my loving husband and my little family.

There's Grandma!!

One of those precious little father/son moments.

Three generations :)

23 Weeks Pregnant

Well here I am at 23 weeks looking rather huge if you ask me! I am carrying SOO different than with Ben. I am not sure I even looked pregnant at 23 weeks with Ben and when I finally did show he was just a big ball right up front. Anna is niiiiceeee and spread out. LOL Also I am growing my nice honker of a pregnancy nose. Not sure how common this is but my nose tends to get huge during pregnancy LOL..I look like Gonzo!!

We're Off and Running Now!!

Before very recently Ben has never worn shoes with soles. And many generous people have given us a HEAP of hand me down shoes (that look like brand new!) but not a single pair was in his size (he is on the small side). I tried the ones that were closest to his size and it was as if his feet were suddenly encased in cement and it was followed by much whining, crying and frustration.

Today we went on a trip to the Goodwill thrift store just for a reason to get out of the house. When we walked in the door we saw these adorable little orange sneakers in just the right size and they were brand new from the Children's Place!! But wait!! It gets better!!! They were marked at $2.99, but it turned out they were on sale for 50% off!! So they cost us $1.50!!

These shoes he took to almost immediately and he has been off and running ever since!

For about a moment I was concered about orange sneakers rarely matching his clothes, but then I decided they would match his hair every day! ;)

Sometimes A Little Boy...

Just needs his mommy...

and sometimes his daddy...

Ben Got Some New Duds Too

These are just a few outfits Ben got for his birthday. Couldn't help trying them on and getting a few pics :)

I Couldn't Resist!!

So we made a little trip to Kohls and Target....you know...just to SEE if there were any good deals ya know. Now I wouldn't say I am frugal...I am downright CHEAP and I still couldn't resist getting all of these ADORABLE outfits for Annabella (and before some kind soul makes a comment about season/size I got a variety of sizes and seasons).

Ben's First Haircut

Well, we had actually cut Ben's mullet off just before his first birthday. I loved his shaggy bangs, but they were starting to drive him bananas. I just can't see paying to have someone else give my son a bad haircut when I can give him a bad haircut myself!

Definitely a challenge to cut the hair of a moving target!!

The bangs came out a little short (because a certain grandma kept insisting they were still hanging in his eyes LOL). But otherwise pretty successful!

The finished product.

Doesn't he look all grown up now!!

We're Having A......

GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D

Annabella Katherine will be her name. 19 week ultrasound went great. Everything was growing as it should and baby looks nice and healthy. I will have monthly ultrasounds from here on out.....which I loooveeee. Sometimes being high risk has its benefits ;)