Sledding & Swimming

We FINALLY have some snow in Des Moines so we took advantage of it this weekend with some playtime in the snow. It wasn't a lot of snow, so Andy piled it up around Marie's slide and she enjoyed sliding on down into the pile. Marie really loves the outdoors so we were happy to endulge...especially since Andy had the afternoon off and could enjoy it with her.


Unfortunately along with this cold snap comes cabin fever. So, we decided to take advantage of a local indoor pool. Marie was thrilled to put on her suit and splash in the water. We all jumped into the mildly cold water and played basketball and worked on our swimming techniques as well...she is getting pretty good at kicking those feet but still not so sure about putting her head under the water.
I also got to spend some time at home with Marie on Friday due to her cold/cough. We got to play, watch movies, and of course talk...this girl likes to talk. Here were a few of her funny things this weekend:

"Marie, I am going to take a shower now."
"Ok mom...don't forget to take off your socks and underwear ok?"
***
"I love you so much Marie...you are the best girl in the world."
"Oh I love you too mom, you are the mom in the best world."
***
"Mom, do you think the baby will like Charlie?"
"yes I think so."
"Do you think Charlie will like the baby?"
(This conversation continued through about every person in our family...overall we agreed that the baby will like everyone and everyone will like the baby.)
***
"Mommy and Daddy?"
"Yes?"
"I need help hanging my picture on the wall because I put it up there because I want it up there but it fall down because it didn't stay up there."
"Ok, do you want help?"
"Yeah because I want help."
(Marie is really into the whole "because" thing right now.)
***
"Mommy!!!"
"What?"
"Where did your baby go???"
(I was lying on the couch so my stomach looked much more flat than usual)
***

Beauty and the Beast

Marie got to experience her first move at a theater this weekend. We took her to the 3D Beauty and the Beast on Friday night. I was a little nervous about how she would handle it but she did great! She kept saying how excited she was and how much fun she had. She loved the "really big tv" and of course the popcorn.

Of course when we got home she needed to put on her own Belle dress which she got for Christmas from Aunt Katie.

Also this weekend, Charlie and Marie spent a lot of their time hanging out together on the couch watching movies. Charlie loves to lay on people's laps but he has rarely done this with Marie unless forced into it by Marie. Sunday night, Marie climbed up onto the couch and he quickly scooted over and laid his head on her lap...too cute for words.
Marie was so happy he wanted to sit with her.

15 weeks and growing

I am officially 15 weeks along and this baby is growing, growing, growing...well, at least I think so because my belly is growing, growing, growing! (Marie reminds me nearly every day that I am getting bigger...thanks Rie)

At my most recent appointment, the heart rate was 156. The baby has always been a mover and difficult to track down to get that number...makes my heart jump every time I lay there and the doctor keeps moving around my belly trying to find the heartbeat. However, when it finally sits still, the heartbeat is strong and loud.

I am feeling so much better now. I occasionally have a random nausea/vomiting episode but nothing like I used to be. My appetite is back and I now look forward to eating meals instead of being afraid of them. Just like with Marie, I am craving lemon and sour things. We go through about 5 lemons a week. I always wanted tuna when I was pregnant with Marie but that doesn't sound good at all to me this pregnancy...very interesting how each one is so different.
I haven't felt the baby move yet...but I have had a few moments of "maybe" movements. I am so excited to finally feel this baby kick away.

Marie is going to be such a good big sister. She loves to kiss, talk, and sing to the baby whenever she can. She frequently asks to see the baby and tells it that she misses it...adorable.

This is a video of her singing into her microphone...this girl loves to sing. Maybe that is why the baby is so jumpy - Marie is always making music for it to dance to.

More recently Marie has been saying the baby is a girl.
We will find out February 27th!

Happy Birthday Hudson!

We were able to sneak away to Omaha for a day last weekend to celebrate Hudson's 1st birthday with Eddie & Jess. It was a full house with a lot of kids for Marie to play with. It was a gorgeous January day so Marie and Hudson's cousins taught Marie how to play football. Marie was very good at running around but not quite as into the whole game as they were.
Hudson did a great job opening his presents and eating his cake...he was even into sharing it with Andy.
Marie had a hard time keeping her hands off the presents and was always ready to help Hudson if he had difficulty ripping the paper.
Marie always thinks of any child younger than her as a baby. She wanted to hold Hudson soooo badly. So, finally I asked her to sit on the floor and I put him on her legs...she looked at me and said, "Oohh I think my legs a getting too tired." Finally I think she realizes that Hudson is growing up :)

It was a great day and we were so happy to be able to share Hudson's big day!

A Busy Start to 2012

With the new year came a full schedule. We started by getting in touch with a realtor as we entered the unknown and scary world of trying to sell our house. We are pretty confident that we will be moving to Sioux City for Andy's residency years.

Although this was a hard decision for us, we agreed it would be a positive move for several reasons: closer to family, opportunity for me to work part-time, and rural med training for Andy. This was not an easy choice for us as we have absolutely LOVED our time in Des Moines. It was such a great experience for us to be completely on our own as we started medical school, my first real job, and our first baby.

We love our neighborhood, our daycare, our friends here, and our home. Yes it is a little small for us and we have spent a lot of time fixing it up, but it is ours and it was our first house together as a family.

So, we have had the inspection done, staging photos have been taken, and our house is the most clutter-free I have ever seen it. Renting a storage space has been very helpful and we have already packed a lot of things away. Poor Charlie has been nervous ever since he saw the first box come out...this will be his 4th move. We are hoping to sell but we don't want it to happen too quickly because we will be in Des Moines until June 1 for sure.

It will be an interesting 5 months ahead with showings, packing, and trips to Sioux City to find a new place for us to live, new daycare, new doctor ( I will be delivering the baby in Sioux City), and a new job.

Wish us luck on this journey!

Off Leash

Yesterday was Charlie's post surgery appointment at the vet. He had a few x-rays taken and a physical exam. We were a little nervous because it was difficult to keep Charlie on the leash for so long and didn't want to hear that his leg hadn't healed right or that he needed more time with restricted movement.

We were pleasantly surprised and extremely grateful to hear that he is healed and ready to run! I think we are officially the best dog surgery recovery center in town after helping Charlie through 3 knee surgeries.

Now, Andy is trying to determine a time when he and Char will go hunting...it can't come fast enough.

All our Christmas Fun

Our Christmas holiday was full of family, fun, and a lot of laughing. Marie made this Christmas extra special this year. She was so in tune to all things Christmas: singing "Happy Birthday" to Jesus, waiting for Santa to bring her that pink bunny rabbit, opening gifts and dropping her jaw with amazement, and even twirling around when she got too excited. It really made Christmas more magical this year.

We started in Spencer with the Mueting side. We went to church, played games, and Marie jumped on the bed as many times as she could convince her aunts and uncle. Marie had several opportunities to open presents and loved every minute of it. Although at times when she would feel overwhelmed by all her fun new gifts, she would just simply grab a book or a lap and zone out for a few.
Next we went to Sheldon to be with the Van Beek side. Marie is one of many grand kids there so she learned how to take turns opening presents. This came easy to her and it seemed to confuse the other little ones that she didn't rip her presents open one after the other...instead she opened her first gift and decided to just read that while the others opened more.

That evening we played "Minute to Win It" games that Keri and I had organized. Everyone loved it! I don't think I have laughed that hard in years. The kids got really into it as well. It's hard to explain it all but the pictures do some talking for me. One of the favorite games was one where you had to get all the jingle bells out of a box that was attached to your bum...needless to say everyone was forced to do this and we have video to prove it!
We were so blessed to be able to spend time with our family over the holiday and enjoy some much needed time off. Although...Andy sees time off as an opportunity to tackle projects. So, he and his dad were busy transforming our basement with some new sheetrock, paint, and organizing. It looks great and we are very thankful for the help. Marie was happy to have Papa in town too because that meant she got to go swimming at the hotel! It was hard to drag her out of the pool after all that splashing around.