Do you know the Muffin Man?

We had lots of play time today with our cousins. Does that really surprise you? We are so happy they live so close and like to spend so much time with us. We started the day at Cub Foods and got to bring Jo-Jo with us! It is so much easier shopping when she is with because she and Brooks enjoy each other so much. Later in the day, we made muffins. Each kid got a chance to stir the mix and dish the mix into the muffin tin. We cooked them up, added some frosting and enjoyed every last bite. Jo-Jo even got to have one, which is a real treat since she is allergic to cane sugar!

Muffins=Happy Kids!

Happy Easter!

We love Easter. Not because of the candy and the Easter Bunny, but because it is one of, if not the most important holiday that we celebrate. On this day we are reminded that we are all sinners and that Jesus died for us on the cross and rose again to save us from our sins! Oh, how we wish everyone who read this blog believed in the wonder of this holiday. Our prayer for anyone reading is that you find the real meaning of Easter, and thank the Lord for giving us his son to allow us to live forever!

Now that we have Brooks we are even more able to be thankful to the Lord for giving his ONLY son, Jesus. I think of giving my son and letting him die on the cross so others could live forever and I can't seem to wrap my mind around it. I don't know that I would be willing to do that. Thank you LORD for giving us Jesus and sacrificing him in order that all of us (all sinners) could live forever. I am so glad we have that hope.

On that note, we also had the Easter Bunny to our house this year. Brooks got a really cool Alligator from the Easter Bunny who showed up at Auntie Bean's house!

We had a chance to stop to see Brooks' Great Grandparents before lunch. He enjoyed the present and the jellybeans while we were there.

So sweet...

So WILD!

If Brooks doesn't throw up or at least have really gross diapers today I will be shocked. My child has eaten so much sugar today, that I can't believe he is down for a nap right now. I thought he would be on a sugar high and wouldn't be able to sleep. We figure it is a holiday and half the fun is letting Brooks indulge.

Happy Easter to everyone!

Happy Easter!

Easter Eggs!

Today we colored Easter eggs. Brooks has a very short attention span, so it was far from relaxing, but still very fun. Brooks did a great job cracking the hard boiled eggs before putting them in the dye! Once they were in the dye, he did a great job wanting another egg to put in a different color! It was not a long activity by any means, but I am glad we attempted it. Memories for Mama, I guess.

After the eggs were done the kids played (as usual). Here is a snapshot of how they play. It is usually so cute (until they start to fight). Today Maggie was teaching Brooks how to spit out his water once it was already in his mouth. Nice, Maggie! For the most part they are wonderful playmates. I am so glad Brooks has them to be buddies with.

There is nothing new on the baby front. I am still just plugging away at exercise and TRYING not to eat too much. Today Greg told me (in an indirect, very sweet way) that I am starting to look prego. He is very sensitive to me because even though I am pregnant I struggle so much with being large and in charge! :) I have my 25 week appointment coming up and I will get checked for gestational diabetes. I didn't have it last time and would be shocked if I have it this time. Then again, I was shocked to find out we are having a girl. By the way, we have a name picked out but not for public knowledge quite yet, just in case we change our minds. It is fun to call her by name though!

Spring Fun!

We can't wait for it to warm up. It was fun to head to the Lakewalk (before Florida..since we have had a snowstorm!) and get some fresh air. I had to put Brooks in his sledding/skating helmet because he doesn't have a bike helmet yet. He didn't end up riding his bike much though, he mostly wanted his Auntie to run with him while he was connected to the leash. I kept him in his helmet the whole time because I was carrying the bike he didn't want to ride and didn't want to carry another item. It turned out to be a good idea because there were several times that Brooks fell and I think even a couple times he may have hit his helmet instead of his face. We must have walked over a mile with the kids. It was really fun and refreshing!

Brooks like to say "Ready, Set, Go..." and off they went running down the Lakewalk. Brooks is actually pretty fast. I was impressed that Steph kept up the whole time. Just kidding, Steph!

Here is my sweet Angel throwing rocks. He couldn't make them into the water, but he still had a blast throwing rocks towards the water. I apologize for the boogers..."Gross" as Brooks would say.

Three Amigos!

BIG News!

I can't believe I forgot to mention this in my last posts. Brooks is now 100% pacifier free! Yeah! We thought it was going to be so hard because he loved his pacifier but it took one stern talk by Opa (not really that stern) and he gave it up for good. Now he says, "No soose (pacifier), Opa, no soose!" It is so cute. He didn't even have one bad night or one tantrum when we put him to sleep without it. He understands that it is for "babies" and he is a "big boy". We are so proud of him and love that he talks more now. I suppose it helps that he doesn't have that thing hanging out of his mouth all the time! Yippee!

More Orlando Pictures

I wonder if Brooks got his daddy's eyes? Hmmmm...

Oma LOVES her grandkids and would do just about anything for them. We had such a great time being with Oma. It was fun to have some uninterrupted time with her.

Brooks loves to give his cousins cuddles. We didn't tell Brooks to put his arms around his cousins. He just asked them to "cuddle" and we were able to snap a picture. He is such a lover.

On the flight home Brooks enjoyed listening to my ipod.

What a fun trip and so glad we were all healthy for the entire week. It was nice to get away and as always is so nice to be home. Love.

Sleepy Brooks

As I mentioned in my last post we spent an entire day at the water park. Brooks did great, didn't show any signs of needing a nap and was full of energy. Before we left we changed Brooks out of his swimsuit and got him all cleaned up for the ride home. Opa put Brooks on his shoulders as we walked out and within 1 minute Brooks was sound asleep on Opa's head. Below is the progression...

Mickey Mouse!

We are back from a great trip to see Mickey Mouse! The weather was amazing and the week flew by! Greg and I can't get over what a good boy Brooks was on the entire trip. We found ourselves saying things like "Can you believe how good Brooks has been?" or
"Wow, I've never seen Brooks behave so well" all week long. We are so proud of him. Brooks really enjoyed the water on this trip. We spent a whole day at Aquatica (the Sea World water park) and Brooks had a blast. He went down slides all day, over and over again. Kids love repetition, and the water park was no exception.

Brooks was a very happy boy to be "free" in the kiddy pool! We don't feel too bad that Brooks missed his YMCA swim lesson this week! I think we made up for it by swimming everyday and spending countless hours in the pool.

When Brooks would get off the slide he would run to his Oma with great excitement. I was able to capture his face as he told Oma all about it! Pure joy, I love it.

Brooks is always great buddies with Opa, but this week was extra special. Opa and Brooks had a lot of time to bond and most of our pictures are of Brooks and Opa because of all of the time they spent together. It was very meaningful to us.

Here is Brooks going down the pink slide. I am surprised this isn't a picture of him going down the yellow slide because that was his color of choice all day! We had a blast.

Greg and I loved that we were both able to run outside every day and enjoyed being able to put on shorts and a t-shirt and be out the door with no hat, mittens, jacket or face mask. It was glorious. We brought the jogging stroller and Greg was so sweet to push it a majority of his runs. He continues to train for Grandma's Marathon and he didn't miss a beat while we were gone. I am getting a little bit bigger and slower, but I still enjoyed running outside and moving my body. I am slowing down to around 10 minute miles outside now, but it makes me feel so energized that I don't want to have to give it up.

The trip was a blast, but we are both happy to be back and are both happy to drink Duluth water again! I forget how blessed we are to have cold and yummy water to drink! :)

Baby Sister...

Brooks is going to have a sister! WOW! Everything looks perfect on the ultrasound and it was fun to see her move. The tech made a couple comments about how active she is. She just wouldn't hold still. It was fun to see her suck on her hand, pick her nose, and try to eat her feet. She was just a wild woman inside my belly! It was great to see and Greg and I are both adjusting to the idea of a girl. It is hard to shift our mindset, but we are both thrilled that we will have a SISTER for Brooks.

We met with the doctor afterwards and he said that everything is great. I gained 2 pounds in 5 weeks which is great for me (remember: 75 pounds the first pregnancy). I have now gained 11 pounds and am excited that all of my exercising is paying off. I will be happy even if I gain 50 pounds (which is a lot)!

We can't wait until mid July to meet our little princess! I think I already blogged that we will have a C-section. The doctor told us that the first week of July was too early (we tried :)!), so we will be happy with the 3rd week of July. We are praising the Lord for this miracle.