Why Grandma's House is Fun

At Grandma's house, there is always something fun to do (especially when cousins are around!).

There is watercolor painting,

trampoline jumping,

 pool time,

water-throwing,

and even excavating.

And these are the adventures of only one day! It has been great to have Ellie and Hayden around this week. Eliza loves playing with other children, and I think she really needed the socialization.

The past couple of days have been great, mostly because I have been able to interact with Eliza, rather than simply watching her play with Nathan all day. I am gaining strength slowly, but surely. I hope my energy levels continue to rise and that I can do more with Eliza daily. Even though it may seem nice, laying on the couch all day reading and watching television is so overrated. I am done with the excessive lounging!

A Juxtaposition of Genders

Earlier this week, I sat outside and watched Eliza play with her adorable cousin Ellie. They ran across the grass, giggling and holding hands as their matching blonde curls bounced in the sunlight. It was picturesque. It was adorable.

I then looked to the other end of the yard at my three-year-old nephew, Hayden. He was furiously whacking a tree with some sort of tool he had found in grandpa's storage shed; I was horrified. Nathan ran over to stop the mayhem, but the mental damage had already been done (to me). I began to imagine two three-year-olds attacking a tree and felt myself internally freak out.

I have a little brother, so I know this is typical boy behavior. However, I had forgotten how rambunctious boys can be! Hearing stories of Nathan and his five brothers as they were growing up has only added to my growing concern. Boys are just a different breed (obviously).

That being said, I have also seen Hayden do the sweetest things this week. He has helped Eliza with puzzles and looked for her blanket when it was lost. He has watched the television shows she likes without complaining and even shared pudding! Best of all, he cuddled with me! Eliza isn't a cuddler, so this has given me hope that at least one of my two boys will enjoy sitting with me.

I think I can convince myself not to panic. Two boys is going to be awesome, even if it is at times destructive :)

Another Ultrasound?

I never thought I would say this, but I am really tired of ultrasounds. Last week, I felt as though I was going to have an anxiety attack as the technician performed an hour long ultrasound. I couldn't move, it's uncomfortable laying down on my back, and there were extended periods of awkward silence as the woman worked; Nathan and I just stared at a screen. Some ultrasound technicians give you a play-by-play and hold conversations, but not all of them. Every organ and bone is measured and then compared to the other baby's measurements. It's a lengthy process to say the least, but we are grateful for the technology and the peace it provides.

The babies still appear to be roughly the same size, which is wonderful news. Baby B is slightly larger, but there are no significant discrepancies. The babies are now head to head instead of head to bum, which I am sure is a relief for Baby B :)

Here are the boys at almost 20 weeks:

We have another hour long ultrasound tomorrow. Yippee!

The Best Thing About the Fair....

Veloci-goat.

Dr. Grant got it all wrong. They didn't evolve into birds!

Baby's Day Out

Yesterday, my mother-in-law and Nathan gathered enough courage and energy to take three children and a wheelchair-bound pregnant lady to the fair. Our niece and nephew, Ellie and Hayden, are visiting for the week, and we thought the fair sounded like a perfect outing for the kids. There isn't much to do in Othello, so we were all excited about the petting zoo, rides, and, of course, the food!

First, we went to the livestock area and saw all of the animals. Eliza was fascinated by the cows,

 but refused to touch them.

She also refused to go near the pigs...

or have her picture taken with the sheep.

She was willing to look at the chickens, though, with Grandma (isn't my mother-in-law cute?).

After the petting zoo adventure, we were worn out! It was hot, the kids were tired and thirsty, and we all needed a break (after 45 minutes). Hayden sat in my wheelchair, while I stretched, and the girls munched on some snacks.

Before we went any further, I insisted upon buying an elephant ear! It's not every day that one has the chance to indulge in fair food, so I definitely took full advantage of the opportunity. Five dollars later (ridiculous, but totally worth it), I was the happy owner of a sugary treat.

Unfortunately, after a couple of bites, I knew the elephant ear wasn't good for me (too much gluten). Thankfully, Eliza and Nathan were around to finish it off. At first, Eliza wasn't too sure about the "cake" (as she called it).

However, she went back for seconds.

And then thirds before we decided she had eaten enough.

The best part of the day (for the kids, at least) was the car ride.

Although the day was an overall success, Nathan and I decided we won't be going back to the fair until our kids are old enough to enjoy a full day of fun. Ellie and Hayden let us know they had a better time at the McDonald's Play Place later on that day.

Figures :)

20 Weeks

I feel huge this week. Other than that, not much has changed. I'm still tired and doing as little as possible these days.

Nathan and I managed to complete three more 1,000 piece puzzles in a four day period.

We're awesome. Unfortunately, I have to stop doing puzzles for a while. Apparently, sitting straight up for hours on end isn't the best for my body. After spending the majority of Friday evening hunched over a puzzle, my stomach turned into a rock as the muscles began tightening. I thought going to bed would relieve the problem, but it didn't help too much. I woke up Saturday morning with the tightness still in my abdomen and then spent all of yesterday laying down.

Now that my nausea is mostly gone, I am hoping I can read without making myself sick. Book suggestions, anyone? Sadly, the library branch here is unimaginably small, but maybe they'll have some good books I haven't read. 

Also, look at how huge Eliza is! She's adorable.

What the @$&!

Something you should all know about Cecil is that she's the queen of southern expletives. These wonderful, colorful phrases include, but are not limited to:

Actually, I better not, there might be children watching.

But what I can recount to you is summed up in the following:

Like mother, like daughter. Eliza has become our little parrot. And while we were used to her beloved "OH GOSH!" after she drops things on the floor or her blanket gets stuck in the door, nothing could have prepared us for: "WHAT THE CRAP!?!?"

We can only hope it ends there. I can rest easy though, because no matter what much-more-serious language she learns from me, I can always say that Cecil started it.