Secrets, secrets are no fun....but you'll definitely want to hear this one!

Someone has been keeping a secret, her very first.

And she is just about ready to burst!


We've asked her nicely not to give it away.


And she's wondering if today is really the day.


For our friends and family to finally hear.


That Addison's going to be a BIG SISTER next year!


We're so excited the cat is out of the bag.


This great news is definitely not a gag.


We've been blessed with a miracle, again.


DUE TO ARRIVE MARCH FOURTH TWO THOUSAND AND TEN!!!!!!!!!

Following up on the GREAT news fresh off the press above!

You've heard it right, folks. Dustin and I are expecting baby #2 in about 6 months. I was 13 weeks yesterday, which officially puts me into the second trimester. What a ride it's been!

On June 24th, after months of trying and fears that another biological baby was not in God's plan for us, we found out that I was pregnant. My best friend from college happened to be visiting from California, so it was fun to have someone to share the news with right away. I knew Dustin would be happy I had someone with me at the time, rather than jealous that he wasn't the first to find out. Kristin stayed with our girls while I ran out to buy a "big sister" shirt for Addison. (Not the one she is wearing in the post above- that was a gift from Kristin a couple of weeks later. The original shirt was not nearly as cute, but my sources were limited.)

The day Addison found out she was going to be a BIG SISTER!

I took my obligatory parking spot at the store. The parking lot wasn't crowded at the time or else I would have saved the spot for someone further along than myself. Actually, on my way in to the store, I noticed a couple of spots that would have been closer. But really, that wasn't the point of me parking there.

Dustin came home from work that evening and Kristin and I had the cameras rolling, anticipating the moment that Dustin would understand the meaning behind Addison's new shirt. It took quite a bit longer than we expected, but after a few hints thrown his way, the light bulb clicked.

(click to play the video)


I can't blame him for not "getting it" at first. Neither of us were expecting this news anytime soon!

And here we are 9 weeks later and ready to share it with the world! I had a wonderful first trimester. I have been low on energy, to say the least, but have not had a bit of nausea. When pregnant with Addison, I could barely stand in the shower for 2 minutes, let alone eat or drink anything, so this has been a nice surprise. We went in for an ultrasound at 9 weeks 1 day and were given an official due date of March 4, 2010. The baby's heart rate was 167 and he/she was already wiggling all around. I think we have an active one on our hands!My energy is beginning to return and I am still feeling great. I am not really showing, which is no surprise given I didn't even begin to show with Addison until I was almost 20 weeks. I think I will show slightly earlier this time around, but not by much.

4 weeks

13 weeks (taken at night because I'm a little bloated after dinner)

We had another routine appointment scheduled for this morning, though routine it did not remain. Due to some recent spotting, I had an ultrasound to make sure that everything was okay. This is what we saw. What a little miracle!

The baby looks wonderful, is developing perfectly and had a heart rate of 154. I am even measuring 2 days ahead. They couldn't find any reason for the spotting (such as a tear or detachment in the placenta) and think it's just my cervix getting rid of old stuff. I feel fine and have had no cramping but feel much better knowing that precautionary measures were taken.

We go back in 4 weeks (September 25th) for my "big ultrasound" and to find out the sex of the baby. We can't wait!!!!!!

Stay tuned for many more updates over the coming months!

Weekend with the V's

We spent the weekend upstate (that's my fancy way of saying Cleveland) with our dear friends, Ben and Kylie. Ironically, we made a similar trip up to see them almost exactly a year ago. If you look at last years post, you'll see that Addison had a lot of fun in the swing. After she made herself at home by exploring every room in the house, she headed right out to the swing set.

They had a bar, too. She was in heaven!


Ben quickly became her favorite person for the weekend. They played together a lot. Babies, sticks, you name it.

Ben and Kylie live across the street from a small lake. Kye and I took Addison and the dogs for a walk and stopped to feed the ducks.

Though it wasn't just the ducks we fed. Check out the gigantic fish that were fighting for the bread (and winning at times).

After our walk, Kylie and Addison decided to take a rest on the Adirondacks. It was picture perfect, hence the many photos. I'm not sure what Kylie was doing that was so funny, but Addison was having a great time. Enjoy "The Adirondack Series".

One last picture (or two) with our hosts before hitting the road. Thanks for having us, guys!

ABC song

I keep forgetting to mention that Addison can sing the entire ABC song. There are a couple of parts that aren't quite as clear as the rest, but for the most part, she's got it down pat.

I credit that to this guy. She's had Leap since she was a young infant. It's one of the best $10 ever spent. We keep it in the car and she plays with it every time we are on the road, singing right along.
One of these days I will get it on video. Why is it that they don't perform when you want them to? :)

Poo-Poo on the Potty

UPDATE: She went pee and poo on her little training potty tonight (8/26/09) before bath time! We aren't formally potty-training yet, but I think this is a great start! Oh, and she proved me wrong by pooping twice today. Little stinker.

ORIGINAL POST:
Addison went poo-poo on the potty for the first time today! Every day after lunch/before her nap, if she hasn't already gone, I ask her to go poo-poo (so she doesn't wake up halfway through her nap and go, thus resulting in a shortened nap). 9 out of 10 times, she'll squat in place and go (in her diaper). She also tells us when she has to go. But, she only poo's once a day, so if she's already gone, I know it means she is just having gas.

Yesterday after lunch, she said she had to go poo-poo and I told her that was fine and to go ahead and go. Then she told me she wanted her clothes off. Next, she wanted her diaper off. So, I stripped her down and off to the bathroom she ran. I helped her up on the potty and as she watched through her legs (which sounds icky, I know, but it was humorous to mommy) - she pooped! And let me tell you how much easier the clean-up was....

We're so proud. :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AUNT EMILY!

WE LOVE YOU SO MUCH AND WISH WE WERE WITH YOU TODAY (AND EVERY DAY)! WE HOPE YOU HAD A GREAT BIRTHDAY DINNER. CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOU IN A MONTH!!!

Congratulations, Meganne and Trent!

A BIG congratulations to our friends, Meganne and Trent, on the birth of their daughter, Meredith Josephine, who entered this world early Saturday morning at 7lb 15 oz. She is absolutely gorgeous and we can't wait to meet her in just over a month!

Welcome, Meredith!

Carousel Ride

Addison went on her first carousel ride at the Zoo today. We walked by the attraction twice and both times she said "Adsin ride horsies". She seemed really excited. This was essentially her first ride on anything amusement park-like and I thought she'd love it because she is such a thrill seeker. We started off fine. She was looking around, checking it all out. Then, the panic sets in. I keep replaying the video and feel worse and worse each time. You might not be able to tell because the resolution on blogger isn't so great, but my poor baby was so scared! Her face totally changed in a split second. She didn't cry, but needless to say, she wanted off the horse and spent the remainder of the ride in my arms.

Flowers

I have to thank our sweet and very talented neighbor and friend, Tara, for bringing over some of her leftover floral arrangements from a Bridal Show. They are gorgeous!

Splash Pad

This post catches me up. Yippee! Now I must go write on the chalkboard "I will not get behind on blogging" 1000 times.

On Saturday, we met up with some friends an afternoon/evening of family fun. Given the 90 degree weather, we forwent (I know - it's a weird word, but a word indeed) some local festivals and opted for the splash pad.

Unfortunately splash pad attempt #1 was broken, so we headed a little further to another place. We are pretty sure this wasn't intended to be a splash pad when first built, but rather to beautify the park. This conclusion derives from the facts that it looks like decoration and also that Beth and Josh used to run through this park and never once saw anyone playing in the water. I'm not sure when it turned into a splash pad, but I am grateful for the transformation because it was great fun. And what's more beautiful than a bunch of kids running through waterfalls and fountains on a steamy day?

Addison was not timid with this splash park. Probably because it was so hot and the water felt very refreshing!

She got all sorts of wet!

Oh, there's our little comedian with a bucket on her head. Looking on in the background is my gorgeous pregnant friend, Beth. She's going to have a little boy in a couple months!

Addison doesn't just wear buckets on her head. She is a lover of anything hat. She found 5 year old Robbie's hat and thought she looked pretty darn cute. I would have to agree!

Playing in the fountains.

Sitting on the fountains.

Lollipop lollipop, Oh lolli lolli lolli

Last Friday, I took these 3 girls (Addison, of course, and our 2 neighbors) to a free concert at a little local amphitheatre. There were a series of 3 Lollipop concerts this summer and this is the only one we were able to attend. I thought Addison might be a little too young but since she loves music and dancing, I wanted to try it out.


It was only 10:30am but nearing 85 degrees. It was HOT. And crowded. There were several hundred, if not a thousand, people on the lawn. And some on stage, but we'll get to that.


The group who performed on this day were a bunch of dads who wanted to sing music their kids would enjoy. They sang anything from songs about touching your nose, chin, feet, etc. (which Addison is demonstrating below) to Hannah Montana and The Jonas Brothers (which I thought my neighbors would enjoy).


Addison had a ball. She danced up a sweaty storm and fit right in!


She even sported a braid because she heard that's what all the older girls were doing. Actually, I just thought it was cute. Turns out, many of the older girls were indeed wearing identical braids!

They clapped to the music.

And danced to the tunes.

And eventually joined some other teeny-bopper groupies up on stage

where they spent the rest of the concert swirling and twirling and spinning and twisting away!