Our First Nursery!

Despite the fact that this will be our third baby, this is actually the first "nursery" that we've been able to decorate due to the fact that we were renting before this. This is the first time we've been in our own home with a new baby and could do just exactly want we wanted to do with a room. So here's our "first baby nursery" (sorry the pictures are so dark but at least you get the idea!)...

Jason and my brother-in-law Jeff spent a Saturday last Spring putting up the bead-board and chair-rail around the room. We LOVE how it turned out!!

The "new and improved" changing table (it's actually just our old light oak-colored one that I painted a nice chocolate brown to match our new crib.) I was amazed at how well it turned out!!

This is actually the second largest bedroom in our home, but due to two closets in the room, it lacks a bit of wall space. I was really hoping to get a recliner for this room like we have in Landon's, but I also wanted to keep the futon in here so we would still have space for guests. We ended up compromising by keeping the futon and just getting this nice glider chair. It's not quite as comfortable as a recliner/rocker, but it will definitely be used a lot for all of those nursing sessions ahead of us!

My favorite part of the room is this new crib and bedding set. Our old crib was cheap, broken (when both Abby and Landon decided to use it for a trampoline), and recalled (due to the drop-down sides) so it was definitely it need of replacement. I really LOVE this new crib and hope we can get many years of use from it!!

These are the only wall decoration we currently have for the room. I am hoping to add more after the baby comes and we pick out a name!!

Jason and I were both really happy with how the room came together. It has a nice relaxing feel to it and I will often go in and just sit in there to imagine what this new little baby will look and be like. Now he/she just needs to get here already!!

Pregnancy at a Glance!!

Well after 40 weeks, this pregnancy journey is about to come to an end. It has been a completely different pregnancy from my other two. After a rocky first trimester, the last 24 weeks or so have flown by and I have felt really good for the most part. Now we are just so excited to meet this little baby!! So here's how it all went down...

12 weeks...(Can't believe how flat my tummy used to be!!)

16 weeks...

20 weeks...

24 weeks...

28 weeks...

32 weeks...

40 weeks...

I've actually had two due dates with this pregnancy. June 19th was based off of my last menstrual cycle and June 26th was based off of an early ultrasound. So in that last picture I am either five days past my due date or two days before it. Either way, I am calling it "full-term" and it will be the last pregnancy picture I take this time around!

I actually had about 3 hours of mild contractions last night and was pretty sure I was starting to go into labor. But alas I woke up this morning and was pretty sad that I wasn't quite ready to go to the hospital yet!! I really can't complain too much...I'm still working out, I haven't gained too much weight with this pregnancy (actually I haven't gained any weight in the last month or so), I'm not swollen in the slightest and no real aches or pains to think of. I've been really amazed at how good this pregnancy has been, but I'm just really ready to hold this little one in my arms instead of my belly. Plus I'm getting a bit anxious to see how labor and delivery will go so it will be nice to finally be done with that part.

Having the gender be a surprise this time around has actually been a lot of fun. Everyone now is so excited to find out what we are having and my midwives have told me that it gets really exciting in the delivery room when the family doesn't know the gender. I loved finding out the gender with both Abby and Landon, but I'll be the first to admit that this surprise has added a little something extra special to this pregnancy.

Here's to hoping that this baby decides it's time to leave soon!!

Father's Day

This picture was taken in 2008, Jason's first Father's Day as a father of two!! (Abby was 2 1/2 and Landon was just weeks old!!)

This picture was taken this morning, Jason's last Father's Day as a father of two (with baby #3 expected to arrive any day!!)

Jason is a wonderful father and it is so fun for me to see him play and interact with the children that he loves so much. According to Abby and Landon (in their own words), here's what makes Jason such a great Daddy...

Abby:
1. He tickles me.
2. He makes us breakfast sometimes.
3. We like to chase Daddy!
4. Sometimes I like to read to Daddy
5. He likes to spin us around.
6. He gives us piggy-back rides to bed.

Landon:
1. Chases us with the monster.
2. Plays catch with me with my football.
3. We play with his iPod/iPad.

We love you so much....Happy Father's Day!!!

Throwing the Pitch

The highlight of Landon's birthday was throwing out a ceremonial first pitch at the local Hagerstown Suns game. This boy has so much natural athletic talent and since playing catch is one of his favorite things to do, we decided a little birthday party at the ballpark would be a perfect way to end his special day.

First, the windup...

Then the mighty arm goes into throw-back mode...

Releasing the ball...

And ending with a perfect follow-through!

A very happy little boy walking off the field with his proud mommy!!

He got a huge cheer from the crowd after his debut performance and we received several comments throughout the night on just how adorable he was to watch.

It was a perfect way to end a great birthday for this little sports fan.

We love you little Landon. Thanks for giving us so much laughter and fun during these last three years. We look forward to many more years of family fun and baseball games together!!

Blowing Out the Candles

After opening presents, it was time for some cake!! Landon was eagerly awaiting the yummy deliciousness of this little cake...

After a round of "Happy Birthday"...

Landon blew out his three candles like a champ!!

The New Three-Year-Old

Landon was quite excited about his birthday this year. All week long we would count how many days until he would turn three and he loved seeing the number of days go down!!

The cute little birthday man himself...

Abby was very excited about Landon's birthday too and amazingly didn't seem to get jealous at all with the attention on Landon that day. They really are good little buddies!

After lunch, we opened up some fun presents from family including a fun Scooby-Doo basket and pajamas from Grandma Julie and Grandpa Don...

And this super-fun sand baking kit from his Aunt Tasha and Uncle Jeff...

Abby bought him some matchbox cars with her own money and he got a puzzle, some Lincoln Logs and a shovel/rake set from mommy and daddy. Abby and Landon were entertained for the rest of the day just playing with all of his fun new toys!!

Birthday Boy -- Breakfast in Bed

On Saturday, June 4th, our little man turned three years old!!

That morning I heard some commotion in the kitchen around 6:30 a.m. or so but went back to sleep for a bit longer. Then around 7 a.m. I walked into Landon's room and discovered this sight...

Abby decided all on her own to make Landon "breakfast in bed" for his birthday. (Jason and the kids had done the same for me for Mother's Day and I thought it was so sweet of her to do something like this for her brother's special day too!)

Breakfast consisted of toast, dry cereal and some juice, all of which was carried in on some cookie sheets!

What a fun and exciting way to begin Landon's special day!!

First Trip to Greenbrier

Each Tuesday morning during the summer, we get together with a bunch of other families and head down to Greenbrier State Park. They have a really fun lake and beach area that all the kids just love (and the moms have fun talking and playing games too!) We went for the first time on Tuesday, May 31 and it was a great day to go for two reasons...

1. School wasn't out yet so the lake was practically empty

and

2. Jason took the day off so he could see why we love this place so much!!

This year we purchased a new beach tent so that I can continue to go even when the baby arrives. This thing is so nice and pops up and down really easily. It also stays in place much better than our beach umbrellas have done in past years! (I hope I don't blind you all with my super white body and big belly poking out!! I refuse to buy a maternity swimsuit for these last couple of weeks so shorts and tank tops will have to do!!)

Landon loves the sand but eventually he ventured out into the water and had fun splashing around with Abby too!

Goggles are their new favorite accessory!!

We can't wait to spend many more fun-filled days with you Greenbrier!!

Memorial Day Fun

For Memorial Day, we got together with two other families to take our kids to the "big slide" in Rocky Ridge, MD. On the way, the kids showed off their "cool" riding style...

The slide was like a big bowling alley on a downward slope. The kids LOVED going down it again and again and even some pretty nasty road rash didn't stop them from continuing the fun all morning long.

At first Landon would only go down with either Jason and I, but by the end he was an old pro and would go down all by himself on his tummy!

We finished up the activity by eating some well-deserved snow cones (the temperature was in the high 90's that day!) We also had a fun time that night playing in the pool and enjoyed a nice BBQ with some great friends. It was a great way to kick off the summer season!!

Father Son Camp-Out

On May 27-28, Jason and Landon went on their first father-son camp-out with our church. They were both really excited about going and Landon kept telling me all day that I wasn't allowed to go...it was just for him and daddy!!

Landon's favorite part of the whole night was playing baseball and catch with everyone. He is quite the little sports nut!

He also really liked setting up the tent with daddy...

Jason really enjoyed the pig roast (Landon a.k.a "our lil' vegetarian" did not...instead he filled up on hot dog buns. My sister Lara would be proud!)

They ended up having some rain and thunder while they were out which was a bit frightening for Landon. He also had a hard time going to sleep when there were still people awake outside. At one point he turned to Jason and asked "Daddy, why don't those boys go to bed?"

The next morning most of the group went canoeing but Landon was ready to come home. He insisted that he really missed his mommy and Abby!! (Abby and I had fun eating ice cream and watching a movie that night but by the next morning Abby was heard saying several times "I sure do miss my Landon boy.")

We are now looking forward to a whole family camp-out soon although that may have to wait until Call #3 makes their debut!!

Splish Splash

It seems like we skipped right over Spring this year and headed right into the hot stuff. Of course I seem to run about 10 degrees hotter than everyone else so that probably doesn't help matters!!

We decided to buy a little kids pool to help beat the heat on these hot summer days. It's a pretty tiny pool but it doesn't prevent these kiddos from having a blast.

They would take turns running into the pool and bouncing on their bottoms inside...

Don't mind this little "wild-woman"...she really was having a fun time although her face looks a bit scary in this picture!

Best of Friends!!

How Our Garden Grows

Last year we got into this home just a tad too late to plant a garden. Making a raised bed garden was on our "spring-to-do" list this year. We decided to plant tomatoes, peppers, onions and zucchini. Here's to hoping we get some good garden food this year!!