It Really Is A GIRL!!!!

I had my 19 week sonogram this morning, and it confirmed that, YES, we really are having a GIRL!!!! I guess I can really start believing it now! It has been fun the past month or so thinking about and planning on having a girl but in the back of my mind I kept thinking that maybe the 1st sonogram wasn't really right.  But that didn't stop me from getting busy with some fabric, ribbon, and a sewing machine. Here are the projects I have done in the past couple weeks...

This pink dress and bloomers I made using an actual pattern. I did it (mostly) all by myself...with some assistance from my mom on putting in the zipper on the back of the dress.  I am normally not patient enough to read all the detailed directions and figuring out what they are talking about in the pattern, but this time I did the best I could and took my time reading the directions over and over trying to figure it out.  I am very pleased with how it turned out! Also pictured are 2 little pink hair bows.



From that same pattern I made this matching pink jacket and bonnet. So precious!

I found a tutorial online for what is called a "pillowcase dress" then added on my own ruffle around the bottom. This was a very simple dress to make and probably took less than an hour to make from start to finish. Also pictured is a larger pink hair bow to match.

This is my first attempt at a 2 piece outfit with pants.  I made the top using a "peasant dress" tutorial I found online, but just shortend it to make it into a shirt.  To make the pants I traced around an old pair of Jacks baby pants to make my own pattern, then after sewing the new pair of pants I just added some ruffles around the bottom.

This is already too much fun!  With Jack taking 3 hr-4 hr naps each day, that is giving me the time right now to sit down and sew. I will take advantage of these long naps while I can and enjoy the quiet time to get creative!

Big Boy Playtime Activities

It is stinkin' hot outside these days!  I have no desire to spend any time outside - at all!  I have been all over pinterest looking for things to keep the little man busy indoors (or at least wet and somewhat cool if we go outdoors.)  It is funny the simple ideas of things to do that I find that I either never would have come up with, or the things that seem so basic and that anyone could think of to try, it just never really crossed my mind to do it (like playdough.)

#1 - Pom-poms in a container. I cut some small holes in the lid of an old plastic baby food container I had saved. I gave Jack a handful of colorful pom-poms and he puts them in the container through the cut out holes. Its amazing how fun he thinks this is and what a challenge it is all at the same time! 

A close up of the "game"

I made a masking tape "road" for Jack to drive his cars on.  He understood the idea to drive the cars in the area of the "roads" but still doesn't quite get the concept of following the lines to drive his cars on.

Next, playdough!  I made a quick batch of homemade playdough during nap time.  He was not too sure what to think of it.  He enjoyed playing with it along with the cookie cutters. He was entertained for a few minutes until he decided to take a bite.  I thought he wouldn't like the taste of it and it wouldn't be an issue.  Nope.  He liked the way it tasted.  I don't get it!  He is the pickiest eater when it comes to meals right now, but if it is something that shouldn't go in his mouth, he loves it!

Hard at work!

Little exploring hands.

Outdoor water playtime! I filled a bucket with some water and added a sponge ball, paint brush, and wash cloth.  We went out on the front porch (in the shade during the early part of the morning before it was 107 degrees out there) and Jack got right to work!

"Lets see, what do I need to do first?"

He had fun splashing the water all around, "painting", and getting wet!

To top off the fun, we cooled off with popsicles!

What a tasty treat for a sweet little 18 month old boy!

Fun Outings

We spent the morning out and about yesterday. I took Jack to a playground in Frisco.  He had a great time exploring!

Taking a little ride in the big fancy swing!

Riding the horse!

Next we took a trip to the library for story time.  This was the first time we went to toddler story time instead of the one for babies.  He LOVED it.  Before going into the story room he was kind of fussy so I wasn't sure how it would go.  But once we were in there he was captivated!  Mother Goose was there singing songs, telling stories, using puppets, doing finger plays.  Jack was quiet and watching for the entire 45 minutes! It was amazing!  Here he is sitting in my lap all reclined with his hands behind his neck all comfy and listening to Mother Goose. So cute!  After story time we did a little shopping, had lunch and then Jack ended up taking an almost 4 hour nap! He must have been exhausted from all that fun! 

More of the Beach!

I realized I had missed posting some of the pictures we had taken on our phones throughout the week.

Jack the Beach Bum

Daddy and Jack.  They both were so happy to be at the ocean!

Jack and Mommy.  It was a cold and windy day so we were extra cozy with our hoods up.  Jack didn't even fight wearing his hood...or his hat many days for the most part. 

The guys went fishing at the bay late one night and caught a couple of these little sharks!

A few views of inside the condo - kitchen

Living area

Our room for the week



Looking through the sliding glass doors onto the back patio.  Just over that sand dune is the ocean.



Barrett dug this super deep hole one afternoon.  It was so deep even he had a hard time climbing out of it.  That is Oliver in the background looking at the water.



Jack's footprints in the sand.



Little Mexican Food Lover

Whenever we eat Mexican food, Jack is a very good eater! This is almost always the case when we go out for dinner too.  If it is a Mexican restaurant he will sit still and eat quietly for the whole meal.  If it is any other type of food it is hit or miss.

I think he likes  his enchiladas, beans and rice!

Jack is loving to use his fork and spoon these days too!

Baby #2 - 17 Weeks

(There is my cute little 17 month old friend joining me for my picture)

Pregnancy Highlights:

How far along: 17 weeks
How big is baby: Depending on the source she weighs 5-7 ounces and  is 5-6" long and the size of a mango.
Gender: Right now they are saying girl! We are 80-90% sure about that.  I go back in for another sonogram in about 2 weeks and then hopefully we will be 100% sure!
Movement:  I have been wondering for a while if what I have been feeling was movement.  I think I felt some movement for real just last night!  What a wonderful feeling!
Sleep: Sleeping well so far.  Trying to sleep on my side the best I can since they say don't lay flat on your back.  The long body pillow seems to help out with that.
Maternity Clothes: Around 13 weeks I started wearing some maternity shorts. I'm still kind of in that awkward point where regular clothes are too tight and maternity clothes are a bit too big.  The most comfortable thing to wear currently is dresses.
Symptoms:Early on I was nauseous (1st trimester) but right at about 13 weeks I got over that and I have been feeling good! Feeling nauseous this time around was a big change from when I was pregnant with Jack.  With him I only felt that way if I was really hungry.  That wasn't the case this time though.
Cravings: Changes from day to day.  Early on some days I wanted soup, goldfish, and more starch type foods.  Recently I haven't had any real cravings.
Aversions: Also early on I didn't have much of an interest in fruits and veggies and if you can believe this I wasn't really wanting sweets.Weird! But I'm over that now.
Emotions: Excited! This pregnancy really has flown by so far.  I guess that is what happens when you are busy with a toddler all day.

Long Beach Island 2012

At the airport
Jack is excited to go on his first airplane ride!

Checking out the toys at the gift shop while waiting for our plane to board

Looking at the airplane out the window

All set to go!

During take off, Jack fell asleep within minutes and slept about 45 minutes.  This gave me some quiet time to check out the Sky Mall magazine.

Wide awake and ready to play!  As long as we kept pulling out new toys and snacks from his backpack, he was a happy boy.  After getting off the plane several people even commented to us on how well he did for the plane ride. I was a proud mama!

Jacks favorite part of the plane ride...looking out the window over New York City as we were landing!

A trip to the local Wawa - soft pretzels, coffee, tasty kakes, hoagies

Our first evening out on the beach

Jack LOVED the water!

Stormy sky.  During the week we were there it rained on and off over 2 days.  Not too bad.

Little sandy feet

We took an early morning stroll down Long Beach Blvd.  Jack sat in his cousin Griffins double stroller for the ride.  We had to bundle up the boys to keep them warm. It was a cool morning.

Our first day at the beach was our 6 year wedding anniversary so while we were there Tara and Jacob offered to watch Jack for an evening so Barrett and I could go out for dinner.  We went to this cute restaurant and got some yummy seafood. What a treat that was!

Happy 6 year Anniversary!

The boys went crab fishing at the bay and actually caught a handful of crab.

The fishermen....checking out their crab

We drove about an hour south and spent one afternoon at the Ocean City, NJ boardwalk.

Jack got this pin wheel on the boardwalk.  He thought it was pretty cool!

My yummy GIANT slice of cheese pizza!

Funnel cake - I felt like I was at the state fair with all this yummy food.

Back at the shore and at the end of our street was a cute little bakery.  We walked down there a couple mornings for donuts.  We even tried out the "best jelly donuts on the planet."  They were yummy!  Alex was able to come and join us for a couple days (there he is next to Oscar the grouch.)

Jacks favorite thing to do on the beach was run towards the crashing waves.  We were right there just inches away from him at all times to catch him as he ran towards the water because he would not stop on his own.  He had no fear of the water! 

Playing in the sand.  He had his pacifier in his mouth most of the time while we were at the sand because otherwise he was eating the sand. Yuk!

The big boy cousins dug this big whole in the sand which actually turned into a great "play pen" for Jack.  He didn't stay in there long but it was at least a short break for mom to chill out and not be chasing him as he ran to the water.

Smores!!!

No campfire but they still tasted fabulous!

Yahtzee Game night at the triangle kitchen table!  I love that table!

We went to Beach Haven (a shopping area) one afternoon, did some shopping and got some delicious clam chowder soup.

The little guys, Jack and Griffin, playing together early one morning.  I think they both planned to wake up early each morning so they could play together.

Back to the crashing waves with Daddy.

Our family!
It was super sunny and Jack decided this week to break my sun glasses :-(

Barrett spent a lot of time boogie boarding on the big waves all week long.

More running towards the water!

Jack and daddy digging a hole together in the sand.

And now play time in that big hole!

This was a happy boy!

Our last night the Dads cooked out burgers on the grill.  Our last dinner at the triangle table:-(

Tara and I took a late night trip for some Rita's Italian Ice - Blue Raspberry flavor.  Us pregnant girls sure loved all the yummy food on this vacation!

Jack slept all week in his tent and did a fabulous job going to sleep each night. Yay!

About to head home but had to get one last family picture on the beach.

Daddy, Mommy, Jack (17 months old), and a little baby girl in Mommy's tummy (16 weeks.)

16 weeks

We had a great week at the beach staying in this condo! (we stayed in the bottom left condo) It is hard to believe that I started coming to this same beach house when I was just 4 or 5 years old and here I am close to 30 years old and have now taken my own baby for a week at the very same place. Now that is an amazing thing!