New (to us) things are so EXCITING

Guess what we got? That's right... A PIANO!!

Miriam is already loving every minute of it.

Michael's parents got a new piano a while back and had their old one waiting for us in their basement. Since we are the lucky ones that moved close enough to get it, we get to reap the rewards. I am so excited to have a piano in our house. Miriam loves the children's song book and singing all the songs. Hopefully I didn't lose all I learned from the many years of lessons (thanks Mom for making me stick to it).

Snow Day #2

once there was a snowman

This morning after breakfast Miriam was requesting songs for me to sing. I grabbed the video camera hoping she would let me tape her singing along.




Did you get that last part? Interpretation: She is all done at the table. She wants to sit on the couch and sing the snowman song.

Snow Day

Once I saw the weather forecast for today I knew that we would be staying home. It was a fun day spent crafting and playing together. Miriam enjoyed playing doctor with her dolls while I was cutting out fabric circles. I even taught Miriam how to use scissors, was this a good idea? We will have to see if she continues to follow the scissor rules.


When it looks like this outside...
...there is no better place to be than inside with your little girl, doing girly things. The only two things that would have made it better were Michael and a nice warm fire in my fireplace (we have no wood) to keep us comfy and warm. I think I will go make hot chocolate before Miriam heads to bed.

Big Girl Bed

Miriam slept in her big girl bed for the first time last night.
We went to the store and she picked out brand new sheets for her bed.

she was nervous about it at first...

...but once she got in (and saw how excited I was) she perked up.

She slept pretty well.
She fell right to sleep.
She only fell out once.
She was so happy in the morning to be in her big girl bed.
After her nap today, she didn't want to get out of her bed.

28 weeks and counting

The beginning of this pregnancy definitely went by fast. We were so busy with moving across the country, then 3 months later moving into our new place, that I didn't have much time to think about it. I realize now that I am starting the third trimester and you have only heard about my pregnancy once (besides the announcement). So for the sake of my journal, if nothing else, I guess it is time to write this all down. small warning... some of this is in-depth. feel free to skip over and look at the lovely picture at the bottom.

This pregnancy has been a breeze (so far) compared to my first. I was never really sick at all. I felt like my appetite was not all it should be, but I never got sick. I even wondered if the pregnancy test was telling the truth. I wondered if I was really pregnant. I was anxious to get in to see a doctor and make sure everything was okay. I worry. It was a relief to see the little baby on ultrasound and know that it was really there. I was a little stressed about finding a new doctor, but after a couple of attempts it seems like I have found someone I like.

Now, don't get me wrong. I wouldn't go as far as saying I love being pregnant. I have had my ups and downs. I have been super tired the whole time, as I was with Miriam, but with Miriam's nap schedule I have been able to get in plenty of naps. At the 20 week gender ultrasound I was diagnosed with marginal placenta previa. I was asked to come back to the ultrasound specialist in 6 weeks to check on it again. Apparently 80-90 percent of placenta previa cases fixes themselves. As the baby grows your uterus expands, therefore the placenta moves. At 26 weeks I was cleared and will have no further complications with the placenta. As I said on my 20 week update, I was measuring a week ahead. However, at this 26 week ultrasound the doctor said that I have a big boy on my hands, now measuring 2 weeks ahead. I will have to go back in another six weeks for another ultrasound to monitor the size of the baby.

This puts us to a couple of days ago when I had my 28 week check-up. My doctor has said that everything is fine. He isn't worried about the size of the baby (don't get me started on this one) or anything else. I, however, am feeling so very large. My comfort level is fading fast. I still have 12 weeks to go and I can't even imagine how huge I am going to get. Here are some comparison pictures from my last pregnancy.

I feel like I am already almost to the 40 week size. There is no way I am birthing a 10 pound baby, just putting this out there. Michael says it is good to have a big healthy baby. I say fine as long as he grows after he is born. As you can tell, I am a bit worried about this huge baby thing.

sorry for the lovely self-portrait
i should have turned off the flash

Lastly, let me tell you how I felt after the gender ultrasound. When the technician told us it was a boy I was in complete shock. I don't know why, it is always 50/50 right? I went from shock to fear. I don't know how to raise a boy. Ahhh! I am better now. I have been shopping a bit for some boy things. The idea of having a boy has sunk in. Michael couldn't be more excited to have a boy so why shouldn't I be too? We are no where close to having a name picked out and even if we did we wouldn't tell you until he was born. I think choosing a boy name is hard.

Well, you probably now know more than you wanted about my pregnancy. We are so excited to welcome this little boy into our family. Here's hoping I survive...

The Terrible Twos?

We haven't seen too much of it yet. Sure Miriam has her moments, but overall I love this age. She is so much fun to be around. Her imagination is starting to grow. She talks to herself and laughs, it makes me wonder if she has an imaginary friend. She also gives out so many hugs and kisses. We just can't get enough. Miriam loves to help cook, clean, and do everyday chores. She is definitely Mom's big helper. I am sure she is going to be a great big sister.

she was taking her sweeping seriously

We took her to the doctor for her two year check-up right after she had been so sick. She lost almost two pounds, the poor little thing. She weighs 25 pounds and is 36 inches tall. The doctor said she is long and lean and that there is nothing wrong with that. I wonder where she gets that from?

dressing up as a fairy

Miriam can recognize all of the alphabet now and probably knows all of the ABC signs. She loves for me to sing the Alphabet song while signing. Miriam loves music. Whenever the radio isn't on in the car she asks to dance (meaning, turn on the music). Lately when I sing to her at night she has started to sing along. She still loves for me to sing Silent Night from singing it to her at Christmas. I always thought that having a two year old would be fun, but we are enjoying it more than we ever thought we could.

Sweet Tooth

Miriam must be feeling better because I found her eating out of the brown sugar jar.

Ringing in the New Year...

...with sickness. It all started New Year's Eve when Miriam wouldn't take a nap. I knew she was getting sick. We planned to go over to Michael's parents for dinner, so we decided to go ahead and go. Miriam was starting to look tired and wouldn't eat dinner, so I was prepared for a long night ahead. We came home pretty early and put her to bed and headed to bed ourselves (exciting eh?). She woke up every half hour in need of something. After a long day Saturday we finally decided to take her to urgent care at 9:00 pm. She has another ear infection and an upper respiratory infection. The poor thing, when she gets it she gets it bad. Michael went to church alone on Sunday. Now both Michael and I are fighting colds. We sure hope to be healthy by the end of the week. This is the only picture I got of our New Year's celebration. Happy 2011!

Miriam and Michael on New Year's Eve (doesn't she look so sad and sick?)