Our New Baby..... "Carrier"

I hate the rollar coaster that comes with the end of pregnancy. One week the doctors tell me that my baby is so big that we may have to get him here sooner than expected and the next week they tell us that because I've had big babies in the past I should be fine to wait. At any rate, we don't have our baby here just yet, but will be anxiously awaiting his arrival this week. In the meantime, we have surrendered to the fact that we can not fit three car seats in the back of our current vehicle. For those of you who know us well, you know that purchases of more than about $50.00 are somewhat agonizing. We tend to research everything "to death". It took us six months to purchase our last car, but we are proud to say that we were a little bit quicker with the process this time. So after a lot of research, test driving and yes, agonizing, we've joined the ranks of mini-van families everywhere.


We opted for the Toyota Sienna in the end because of too many factors to delve into here. After a week of owning this beauty ( I must admit that they've made multiple improvements to the mini-van since I was a kid), we are really pleased with this purchase. It drives like a car, so I don't feel like I'm trying to maneuver a "boat" in parking lots or in the garage. It is SO easy to get the kids in and out of (not nearly as much lifting and bending as before). And what the kids like the most is that they can actually see out the windows. I think that they're amazed at how much they've been missing. While driving around on a rainy (yes, rainy) day last week Kaymi exclaimed, "Mommy! There's water on the road!" She's never been able to see the road from her car seat before. They love how much of the world has been opened to their view while traveling. Happy kids in the car = a happy mommy! So despite the fact that owning a mini-van makes me really start to feel old (as if turning 30 a few months back didn't really augment that), I love the comfort and the drive.

A Great Big Thanks

I just wanted to post a "thank you" to my friend, Erin, who recently re-designed the layout of this blog. I LOVE it. She is so wonderful to work with, and I highly recommend her to any of you who may be thinking about doing something like this with your blogs. So, congratulations, Erin on your fantastic new business!

Baby Watch 2009

A few weeks ago the midwives that I see at my clinic took my chart to one of their supervising physicians because one of them was concerned about the due date having been moved up. He does not know me or my history, but he told them that they would have to move my due date back to the original date of February 6th. After a little bit of discussion about the size of my previous two babies he agreed that we could go ahead and induce at 39 weeks. I felt better about this than waiting until February to deliver. I figured that things were settled at this point, but then I had my 36 week appointment a few days ago and that all changed! Turns out that I'm measuring 41 weeks. All were surprised by this measurement, including me. So they immediately ordered an ultrasound. Granted, ultrasounds at this late date can be as much as a pound off either way, but they felt like they needed to get at least some idea of how big this kiddo actually is. Well, I'm measuring big because he's big (I've been trying to tell them this all along)! He came in at 9 lbs. 4 oz. Size-wise that puts him at about 40 weeks and 4 days and in the 99th percentile. Yet according to my original due date, which is admitedly the most correct, I'm only 36 1/2 weeks. He's breech as well, so they've decided to change their minds again about when I should deliver this little guy. They want me to wait one more week before we decide anything for certain, but after my appointment next Tuesday, we should have an earlier induction date. We are hoping and praying that he turns himself around. The doctor wants to do an a "version" (a procedure in which the physician manually turns the baby from the outside) if he hasn't turned by next Tuesday, and I would rather not have to have that done. So we could see this little man sooner than we thought. Let's just hope that I don't have to deliver an 11-pounder!

Quick Flashback to Christmas

All of my family was able to be together on Christmas (except for Mike who is still serving his mission in Argentina). Mom and Dad gave all the kids these matching Christmas outfits. This is Kaymi and Stephen with their cute cousins, Colten and Trevor.

Kaymi is definitely not a "girlie" girl. This is what she wanted for Christmas, so this is what she got! Yep, she's holding Transformers. Both she and Stephen love them. I don't think that we will ever have too many!

This is my whole family in our matching zebra pajamas. We recently took Kaymi and Stephen to see Madagascar 2, and they really loved the zebra character named Marty. As soon as Stephen unwrapped his pajamas on Christmas Eve he exclaimed, "Marty pants!" So both Kaymi and Stephen were thrilled that we all now have matching "Marty jams."

We got to celebrate Christmas again with Andy's family the Monday following. We had so much fun together. The swords and shields from Grandma and Grandpa were certainly a hit!

We had a wonderful dinner together before opening gifts that night. Linda recently had major back surgury, so the rest of us tried to pitch in as much as possible. She is still such a gracious hostess and takes such good care of us all. The meal was amazing, but the company was even better! Thanks for a marvelous Christmas, everyone!

Our Little Dancing Gymnast

In December Kaymi's dance/gymnastics class had what they call "Show Week". Parents, friends and relatives are welcome to come and watch the routines that the girls have learned throughout the semester. Andy was able to come, and Aunt Lindsay made it up to watch as well. This is one of Kaymi's favorite moves on the balance beam and off. It's called an arabesque. She's worked really hard to keep her legs straight and point her toe. Check out that concentration!

Kaymi's teacher, Miss Mel, is 100% adorable, and Kaymi loves her.

Stephen loved having the gym open to everyone. He usually has to stay in the waiting room with me each week. He was in heaven being allowed to play on all of the equipment. He's such a coordinated kid. I am amazed at what he can do!

This apparatus is one of Kaymi's favorite as well. The first week we walked into the gym she was thilled to see that they had the uneven bars. Though they didn't tackle them the first week of class (much to Kaymi's chagrin), they've worked a lot on the low bar since then.

She loves to flip around the bars and go upside down like this.

After showing off in the gym the girls took us all upstairs to the dance studio where we watched them perform their tap and ballet dances. They were adorable! They were all a little more shy than usual, but they did a great job nonethless. I just wish that Andy could have seen her do her dances as perfectly as I've seen her do them. She's a great little dancer. She has really good rhythm and a fantastic sense of staying with the beat.