Local Headline Reads: Pictures Taken, All 6 Still Alive

Ok, we did the pictures this afternoon, and I will admit, it wasn't as hard as I anticipated. I think it helped tremendously that Chris is home on vacation and was here to help. That and the incentive of candy afterwards if I was happy with the results, LOL. Now I need help choosing which picture to print to put in the cards. Here are my top 5, please let me know which one you like!

1.


2.


3.


4.


5.


And here is the payoff:

Several handsful of M&Ms.

Let me know what you think!

The Tree is Up!

Ok, we got the tree out of the attic on Sunday, I put it up on Tuesday, and we only just finished decorating it this morning. So we work slow. But it's up! It comes pre-lit, so no fussing with light strings, but I put the garland and the angel on, then last night let the kids go to town on the ornaments. Trust me, no one will ever pay them for their decorating skill. This morning I came out and spread the ornaments more evenly over the tree. Almost all of them were hung in one spot dead center on the tree, and many were hanging either from the garland or from another ornament, rather than from a branch. As a last touch, I hung the breakable ornaments, hopefully high enough to last the season. We only had one casualty this year, and it was broken when I pulled it from the box. I think it got crushed when Levi tried to walk across the boxes. Oops.



Of course, once the camera came out, Levi had to have his picture taken. And since it's really hard to get a bad picture of him, of course it's good enough to post here. Can you see what he was watching on tv when I got out the camera?

Nothing Much Going On Yet

Christmas is coming, but I'm not ready. I've bought cards to send but haven't written any out (and haven't taken the boys' picture for them) yet, and bought ingredients for cookies, but I haven't made any. The tree is not up yet, though Chris is hoping to drag it down from the attic tonight so I can maybe set it up tomorrow. I might also bake some cookies tomorrow.

One thing I did finally get done was giving everyone hair cuts. Last Sunday I did 7 cuts, since Chris really needed one too. Whew it was a long hairy day LOL. Even Levi got a real cut, not just a trim. Unfortunately he was sitting on Chris' lap so he could have his arms held out of the way, but Chris wasn't all that helpful, so there is a spot over his left ear that is too short. Mostly you can't notice it though. He was really good for his haircut, too, which was a pleasant surprise. Some of the older ones still fuss about it.

I had a bit of a worry over my glucose test a few weeks ago. I took my 1 hour test the day after Thanksgiving, and the level came out high, so I had to go back and take the 3 hour test, which is more accurate. Ick, I hate those things, and this is the first time I've had to take the 3 hour. Luckily I found out this week that I passed the 3 hour test. I was worried because being diagnosed with gestational diabetes would be a big complication in my plans to have a vbac. Since I am seeing a new group this pg and will be delivering at a new hospital, it seems that my 5 preious successful vbacs mean nothing, and they all assume I will have a repeat C-section. Even saying repeat sounds dumb to me, since the one I had was over 12 years ago. But phew, I passed, so hopefully everything will go smoothly in February!

Here is a picture I took of Levi last night:


You can't see the bad side of his haircut from this angle. Poor guy caught a cold yesterday, and last night Noah got it too, so they are both home from church this morning, recovering. I hope they are better by Christmas, and that they don't pass it on to their brothers!

Happy Thanksgiving

Chris and I drove down to VA for the day to spend Thanksgiving with Michelle and her family. Aimee stayed in Ohio to do the day with her in-laws, and Dad planned a trip to Tahiti, so he didn't come up. We had a great time, in spite of the rain on the way down. The kids got to watch the movie Cars, which was really cute, and we stuffed ourselves on some great food. I brought all the desserts, since Aimee wasn't bringing her pies. Troyer made brownies, Noah made a pumpkin pie, and I made apple crisp. It was all yummy.

After dinner, Michelle invited 4 of the boys to stay overnight, offering to drive them back up the next day. They were super excited! Poor Caleb hadn't been very good about behaving and getting his chores done all week, so he didn't get to stay, and he was very upset. But that opened up a slot for Micah, who has not been on a sleep over yet. he was very excited! We thought it was an excellent opportunity for him, since he'd have his brothers with him to help with any nervousness about leaving Mom and Dad. They all had a great time, and when the boys got home and Michelle and Gary drove off, Micah cried at the door that he already missed them.

We all had such a good time that I forgot to take pictures until we were going out the door. Here are the few that I took:


They had a great time playing with cousin Alex, who exhibited loads of patience with all the noise!


Micah was so busy playing that he almost didn't have time to give a hug goodbye!


Troyer was happy to stay!


Poor Caleb was very sad to go.


Levi was looking forward to getting home to bed!


Caleb was upset to ride alone in the back, so we did end up moving him up next to Levi.

Once we got home, Caleb realized it was kind of fun to have the house and his baby brother to himself, and wasn't quite so sad anymore. He also did a very good job of cleaning up the house, making up for all the work he didn't do all week.

(Little) Men in Uniform

This weekend Troyer and Noah's Pathfinder group held their induction service during church. This meant they had to wear their uniforms to church. Don't they look cute?



Noah was inducted, so he got to stand up, recite part of the Pathfinder pledge, and light a candle. He managed not to set the tablecloth on fire! Way to go Noah! LOL

As long as I had the camera out, Micah and Levi wanted to get in on the action. Here is a cute picture of the two of them:



Notice that Levi likes to have his breakfast "to go" LOL


I took this picture in front of my house this weekend also. It has been unseasonably warm for a few days, but really, you'd think the silly plant would know better? I only wish Spring were so close... sigh




And finally, a tidbit of news from a few weeks ago:
2 weeks ago Chris had to go on a business trip to Florida. It was his first time ever on a plane. He was nervous and I was nervous for him! I wasn't so much worried about the actual flight as I was about managing the whole airport maze, from leaving the car in the overnight lot to checking in and checking bags, to getting through security, to finding the right gate (gate*s* - he had to switch planes both down and back), as well as renting a car down there, and finding the hotel, an hour away from the airport. We briefly considered my figuring out a way to go with him, but that just wasn't going to work out with all the kids. Luckily he was able to convince the client to fly his coworker down, too, so he had help with the whole mess. It ended up being a pretty smooth trip, though he said it was more boring than anything.

Meanwhile, I was home alone with all the kids for a week. All went well, and I was looking forward to Chris getting home on Thursday night. I wasn't expecting to see him until midnight or later. Of course, just at the time his flight was taking off, disaster struck, lol. Caleb had been playing in the living room, "spinning," and fell and hit his head against the corner wall. Next thing I heard was Noah shouting "Mom! there's blood!" Oh great. Well, he split his head open good! He got a 3/4" gash close to the crown of his head, and it bled a lot. I was afraid he'd need stitches, and I just dreaded the thought of dragging all the kids down to the ER. Of COURSE it had to have happened when Chris wasn't here! So instead I just told Caleb he'd better stop bleeding or ELSE! LOL. Luckily it did stop quickly, so though the cut was long, it wasn't deep. I trimmed the hair away and put antibacterial cream on it and then stood there trying to hold it closed with my fingers. I couldn't put a bandaid on it because of the hair, and the lump that was forming was keeping the sides of the wound apart. I had him hold a piece of gauze to it for an hour or so, and let him stay up a few extra hours to make sure he hadn't hit his head harder than we thought. He didn't have any dizziness or nausea, and it wasn't long before he said it didn't even hurt much, so thankfully I was able to send him to bed, ER avoided.

He had me take a picture of it, since he couldn't see it himself.



The wound dried enough and formed a scab pretty quickly. Of course, under clear instructions to play quietly for the next few days so he wouldn't get the blood flowing again, he fell and hit his head on his bunk bed while playing hide and seek with Micah. (He was jumping out from hiding to try to startle Micah) More blood, etc. LOL Since then, thank goodness, he's managed to let it alone, and it is healing nicely.

Seasonal Pictures

Ok, here is my nod to the season:



Really, that is all we do for Halloween (besides buying 8 times more candy than we'd ever need to feed trick-or-treaters LOL). We don't even carve the pumpkin. What a bunch of Scrooges we are LOL.

And, since today is Love Thursday (oh, you don't know what that is? Apparently someone started the idea to post pictures of Love every Thursday, so when you visit different blogs you can see a variety of kinds of Love) so here is my contribution:

Puppy Love


What better love is there, than the love between a boy and his dog?

Things Are Going to the Dogs Around Here

This morning the boys and I were discussing the names of all their stuffed dogs. They get quite exasperated with me when I confuse them or forget a name. But really, can you blame me? Here is a picture of the whole pound:



You can see, there are more than just dogs; that is because #1, Troyer doesn't like dogs, so he collects frogs and bunnies, and #2 not all the boys recognized non-dogs when they were very young, and so some "odd-breeds" were adopted in.

The names? As best as I can determine: Doby, Caleb Puppy, Skunky, Bully, ?(not named yet), Troyer Puppy, Tuffy, Licorice, Ticklish, Voof, Baby Voof, Radia, Dash, Tom, Lavender, Kessie, Crunch, Boing, Charge, Baby Flex, Arrow, Zed, Dotty, Goldie. Troyer's animals include Froggie, several Kermits, Hopper, Bunny, Carrot, Zaboomafoo, and Lester the Bat. And yes, they do refer to their animals by name. I suppose if I'd had girls, we'd have as many barbies in the house, and they'd each have different names, too, right?

I've got Troyer's birthday pictures uploaded, so I'll share those:


Troyer with his "created" Cars cake


Present Vultures


Levi is always prepared to grab and run


A successful grab!


We had pizza for dinner, can you tell?


Mom, watch my karate move!


So, sorry it's been so long since I've posted. It's not that nothing has been going on, and not that anything bad has happened. I just haven't felt like posting. Not sure why, though I've been feeling tired and depressed lately. Somewhat because the weather has been getting grey and cool, and mostly because Chris is STILL working so much overtime. I miss him, the boys miss him, and even when he is home he is so tired there's not much to him. He says he has enough vacation time to take all of December off; I almost wish he would.

Last week I went on a tour of the hospital where I'll be giving birth. I was supposed to find a babysitter for the boys so Chris and I could go together, but oddly, there was no one available for a Wednesday night, not even MIL. So instead, Chris stayed home with the boys and I took Troyer with me. I figured he needed to come along too, because he wants to be there for the birth of the baby again. He really liked being there when Levi was born. I told him to take notes so he could help his dad around when we go in February.

The hospital is very nice. The "old" wing is only 10 years old, and the "new wing" is brand new. Labor and Delivery are in the old wing, along with the neonatal unit, and Recovery is in the new wing. All the labor and delivery rooms are private birthing rooms, very nice. There is one central room for Cesareans. I'm not sure how many LD rooms there are but it seemed like 20 or 24. In the new wing there are 42 private rooms. We were told that some of the rooms are reserved for pre-term moms on bedrest, and others are recovery rooms for women with other "women's concerns." Still, that's a lot of rooms! The hospital where all my other boys were born had one LDR room, and 4 recovery rooms. They were never all full either.

I felt a little silly on the tour, because out of 8 couples there, all but me were due between the end of this month and the end of December. I didn't even look pregnant next to these women! My doctor had told me I should take the tour "soon" and when I called to set up a time, the hospital seemed to think 20 weeks was right. All the other women were also taking childbirth classes, and the tour guide kept saying "you'll learn more about that in your classes;" of course, I won't! LOL I'm considering trying again to get Chris on a tour mabye in Dec or Jan.

In other news, the boys had a dentist appointment on Thursday. Noah had a small cavity, but he says it was the same tooth he had filled last time, which makes me think it was more the dentist's fault than his, and the dentist was able to fix it right then, so we didn't have to come back. But Troyer had to be scolded for not brushing well enough. The dentist said he had as much tartar as a typical adult! I've noticed he's had this problem since his first adult teeth came in, but he also admitted that he does not brush every day, even though I send him to brush. So I guess he's been lying to me! He's 12 years old, but I have to have him come and show me his teeth every night now. sigh.

Happy Birthday Troyer!

Troyer's birthday was last Friday, the 29th, but he and Noah went on a camping trip for the weekend, and they left at 9:30 Friday morning. Troyer opted to wait for his birthday cake and gifts until yesterday.

I had my ultrasound yesterday, so Chris came home at lunch time to watch the kids. Troyer got to go with me. It was really cool, this is the first u/s Troyer has seen. He thought seeing all the bones was cool, LOL. I will announce what we saw later. *evil grin*

On the way home we picked up pizza and his cake. He wanted a Cars cake, but WalMart was sold out of those kits, so I had them make up a cake with a race track on it, and bought a matchbox sized Lightning McQueen to put on myself. Troyer was very happy with that, since the toy was better quality than cake-topper toys. He also loved all his gifts, which included a Ninja Turtle themed CD Walkman and a Veggie Tales CD to play in it, 3 Star Wars action figures (Han Solo, C3PO, and R2D2) and a Johnny Lightning VW Bug model. He also got a Batman figure and a Veggie Tales DVD.

After moping all last week about having to go away for his birthday, it was a nice change to see him so happy and cheerful.

Ok, so on to the results of the u/s.....

The baby is very healthy, and growing right on track for our due date of Feb 22. The baby was also very active, squirming around everywhere and avoiding the technician's attempts to measure legs and arms and get a good shot of the heart. However, it only took 20 seconds, and seriously this was the first picture she got, so see that it was a BOY! OMG another boy. I'm amazed that God truly thinks that I am such a good mother to boys that I should be given ANOTHER one! Doesn't he know I don't know what I'm doing???

I have to say, watching that little baby wiggling around on the screen, I fell in love instantly. Absolutely adorable (bones and all, LOL) and I can't wait to be able to hold him in February. I am not at all upset to be having another boy. What upsets me is the fact that I am STILL NOT A MOTHER TO A GIRL. It's the general fact and not the specific child that I am disappointed in. There is so much cute pink stuff out there on the racks that I was really looking forward to spending my money on ;-) but now will just sit there. Of course not so much cute blue stuff, plus the fact that I just don't need much more blue LOL.

My other quest has now become finding another cross-stitch baby sampler/annoucement for boy. I am very picky about the designs I choose, and they are hard to find. Everywhere I go I see the same patterns over and over again, and they are the ones I didn't like the first time I saw them. I was unbelievably lucky to find 6 unique designs already, but where will I find a 7th? Plus I have a book of beautiful designs that are all floral and so only appropriate for girls. Now going to waste in my closet. Sigh.

Finally, we need help with names! We have had such trouble already agreeing on 6 boys names, how will we ever come up with another one? Chris has a lot of rules for choosing names, but I'm thinking he'll have to relax some of those rules this time around. I might even have to cave in and buy a baby name book. At least I have 20 more weeks to work on it!

How Do You Spell Relief? K-I-C-K-I-N-G

This part of pregnancy is a tough one. From 18 to about 21 weeks, I can feel definite kicking, but only sporadically. I got some good kicks a few days in a row, but then for 4 days, nothing. Just as I started to worry, a few more kicks. Then another 4 days feeling nothing. Last night the baby finally rolled over to a spot where I could feel LOTS of movement. Phew! It's so cool to feel the baby moving and kicking, but nerve-racking when it stops for very long.

My uterus is about up to my navel now, so easy to feel, though I can still bend over to tie my shoes easily. In fact, yesterday I wore my regular jeans and they were not uncomfortable at all. I'm still not showing obviously yet either. I just look even fatter, LOL. I had bought a bunch of new shirts this summer and had been enjoying wearing them, but now they don't look good anymore, since the area around my ribcage has popped out (the baby pushed all my belly fat up under my boobs, I guess, LOL).

Today Troyer was laying with his head on my lap/stomach, and he said he could tell when the baby moved! My next appointment is on Monday, but it's just a regular check up. The big count-down is for Wednesday, when I have my ultrasound! Everyone cross your fingers for a clear view!

A Surprise Trip

On Saturday I was reading the paper and saw and add for A Day Out With Thomas in Strasburg. Usually I don't find out about those kinds of things until it's too late, unless I plan ahead for them. This time I noticed in time to decide to go on Sunday. I didn't tell any of the kids until Sunday morning, though, because I didn't want to take all of them. Last year I did plan ahead, and I took 4 of them (the oldest 2 were at Grandma's for the week), which meant driving the van. We had a great time, but parking was nasty (at least for me, since I hate having to back up in it). This year I was determined to take the car instead, which meant choosing only 3 to go. All morning I deliberated; I knew I'd take Levi and Micah, and it seemed that I would obviously take Caleb, because he's 6 and a good age for that sort of trip. But Caleb had not behaved well this week (really all summer!) and on the other hand, Troyer had been especially helpful and had not fought me or his brothers all week, and it would be nice to reward him. Also, Troyer is very good at helping me out with Levi, whereas the others are not as good yet at dealing with him. I was actually leaning toward taking Caleb, but he spent the whole time during breakfast whining about wanting to go and stomping his foot when his brothers would taunt him that I would't pick him, so that I hated to reward him for that kind of behavior.

All that to say, in the end I took Troyer, Micah, and Levi in the car, and we drove over. It's about an hour away from here, and I wish we would have gotten an earlier start. We got there about 11:15, but it starts at 9. I hadn't bought tickets ahead of time, which I knew was risky, but worked out ok last year. Well, last year we got there just after it opened and we were able to get tickets for the train ride for 11:15. This year the earliest I could get tickets for was 3:15, which I think was the last ride of the day! Holy cow, it wasn't even 12 yet. I knew there was no way I could last 4 hours waiting for that ride, and neither would the boys. Levi was going to miss his nap altogether, and Micah would be bored way before that. So we ended up not buying the tickets. The boys were a little disappointed but were really very good about it. I know Caleb would have had a fit, so I was glad I hadn't brought him!

We had lemonade and funnel cake for lunch, then Micah and Levi got Thomas tatoos on their arms. They are both really thrilled with those. After that we walked through the play tent where they have tables set up for the kids to play with the wooden track sets. Since we were late this year, most of the tables were already missing the trains, and again, the boys were disappointed. Also, Micah got bumped in the arm while standing at one of the tables, and his tatoo wasn't quite dry, so it smeared a bit. He was very upset about that. I felt really bad for him.

We walked through all the toy store tents, and Levi had a hard time keeping his hands off of everything! He especially liked the books that had noise buttons. At least there was enough to distract him so when he had to put one thing down he was ready to walk over and pick up something else. LOL

The kids got to ride on 2 of the little rides they have set up there: the "Cranky Cars" which is a small car on a track that you propel by cranking, kind of like pedaling but with your hands, and a mini-steam train ride. We got on line for the freight car ride (which was kind of like riding in hay wagons pulled by an engine) but it was out in the sun and while standing there I started to feel like I would pass out. It was the weirdest thing, as I have never felt like that while pregnant before. I never felt hot, and I didn't think I was hungry, but I got light headed and dizzy, and started to blank out. I had to tell the kids that we couldn't stay in line, I needed to find a place to sit. Even odder, as soon as we started walking again, I was fine. I found a place to stand in the shade while Troyer took Micah on a different ride, and after that I was ok.

We went through another tent that had clothing and I picked out a t-shirt for Micah and Levi. I think Troyer would have liked one too, but they don't come in that large of a size, LOL. By that time it was only 1:15, but I knew I was done, and Micah was getting bored, so we decided to go home. I'm glad I hadn't bought tickets for the 3:15 train! The event is set up with the train track running between the station and the tents, with a crossing for pedestrians, so every 15 minutes or so the train would pass by and everyone could wave to the passengers and see Thomas pulling the train. I was glad that at least Levi got to see Thomas, even if he couldn't ride on the train.

One penalty I had to pay for deciding to make this trip at the last minute was that I forgot many things in my hurry to get out the door. I forgot a stroller, and I can't believe how good Levi was about walking everywhere. He never complained! I also forgot my camera, so I have no pictures. I am sad about that. I also would have liked to have along a few extra bottles of water, which might have helped with the dizziness, even though I didn't feel thirsty.

Here are some pictures of the boys with their tatoos and new shirts :



Levi is having some leftover chicken nuggets for breakfast




Once we got home, I found that Chris had had the other 3 boys clean out the van, including vacuuming it! Woohoo! They made many remarks about how much nasty food they found. Maybe that means they will eat less in the van? Well, I can hope anyway, LOL.

I decided that since it was a nice day I should take advantage and cut their hair! Wow, it was many weeks overdue, and I was starting to be embarrassed taking them to church. I was so glad to have the opportunity to do it! I would have done it the last two weekends, but it had rained. I did 4 haircuts; Caleb didn't really need one yet, and Levi isn't ready for clippers yet.

So here they are looking human again (except maybe for Samuel, who didn't want to have his picture taken lol):

Now Micah is having some chicken nuggets

An Exciting Moment

Last night I was lying in bed and I thought I could feel the baby moving. I put my fingers at the top of my uterus where I thought I felt the movement, and soon I felt a little kick right against my finger! Wow it seems early to be able to feel kicks from the outside, but I know I am not mistaken. It was so exciting! I know soon enough it will tire me out to have the baby kicking all night and keeping me awake; but right now it is great to have the assurance that she (No, I don't know boy or girl yet, but hey, let me be a mom to a girl at least until proven otherwise!) is growing and healthy!

The Rest of the Weekend

I am happy to report that as a whole, the weekend was pleasant enough to make up for Friday. Friday itself really had nothing redeeming about it. It did rain on us, and we had to go out to pick up my cake. The store I ordered it at has a nasty woman working behind the bakery counter, and this woman just has no business working with customers. The day I ordered the cake, she was clearly put out that I was pestering her with something so annoying as to order a cake, nevermind that it's her job to take said orders, and she'd have no job if she had no cakes to bake. I was strongly hoping that someone else would be working there for the weekend, but no such luck. A friendly woman asked my name, but then turned and repeated it to Nasty Woman. She went in the back, retrieved my cake, and shoved it at me without so much as a Thank You or Have a Nice Day, not even a small smile. Harumph. It was raining on the way back to the van, which was parked at the very back of the lot because the whole lot was full. The boys refused to dress warmly in spite of my warnings, and complained heartily all the looong way back to the van about how cold they were. I got to sing "I Told You So" several times, and enjoyed it.

When Chris got home from work, the boys told him it was my birthday, and he replied, "No it's not, it's tomorrow." Really? My mother was mistaken all those years ago? It's not even that he didn't know what day of the week it was, he actually said, No, it's the 2nd, isn't it? We've been married 14 years now, and he still doesn't know what day is my birthday??? Ugh. So he quick rounded up the boys to sign the card and hand me my unwrapped gift. But hey, he had the gift and card already bought, so he gets points for that. And he got me something I actually like, so extra bonus points for that, LOL. He got me the DVD National Treasure. I love that movie, and am so hoping they make a sequel.

On Saturday it was still chilly so I slept in and let Chris take the boys to church. He only stayed for Sabbath School, because his leg is still bothering him (we're not sure why it hurts) and he wasn't going to be able to sit in the pew for 2 hours. We spent the rest of the day just hanging out. It was nice. Saturday night is our traditional Movie Night, so we watched National Treasure.

On Sunday I slept in again, then went out shopping. I picked up my cake, but also did a big grocery run and had lunch out by myself. I was pretty tired by the time I got back. He had spent the day helping the boys replace all the doorknobs on the bedroom and bathroom doors. The boys had somehow managed to break all the locks, so none of them locked anymore. Very annoying after the 4th or 5th time being ahem interrupted. That evening we watched our latest Netflix movie. It was 50 First Dates, so we waited until the kids were all in bed. It was pretty funny, and that's saying a lot since I don't particularly like Drew Barrymore or Adam Sandler.

On Monday Chris' parents had a Labor Day picnic at their house, so after lunch we packed up the boys and headed over. The day was beautiful, just right for sitting around on the deck out back and snacking while the boys played hide and seek in the barn and climbed trees. There was supposed to be a big crowd there, but a lot of people didn't come, so it was a little boring. But still pleasant. We ended up saving my cake for the picnic because we hadn't had time to cut it on Sunday night. The boys were happy for that, but honestly, we had barely finished Noah's cake from last week, so I had no appetite for it. I wish I had gotten a picture of it, it was a Pirates of the Caribbean cake. It was pretty cool!

Happy Birthday to Us!

Happy Birthday to that SOSOM!











In honor of my birthday today, the boys have been bickering extra loudly, extra early, and over extra stupid things. And Chris came home from work last night sick. Seems he was working too hard. And Ernesto is coming to dump the last of its rain on us this afternoon. Happy Birthday to me. Aimee, I hope your day is going better than mine! And I hope Chuck doesn't have too much trouble driving down to Mark's today, he'll be driving through that storm. Ick.

Happy Birthday Noah!

Today Noah turns 10 years old! He's hit the double digits! Tonight we will order out for pizza, have cake and soda, and open presents. He is very excited, since he knows what a few of his gifts will be. I have some surprises in there, though, that I know he will like. I'll be taking pictures, so hopefully I'll be able to post them by the end of the week!

The Cat's Out of the Bag

Well, I got it from a reliable source that my news has spread to at least one person who I knew would not be happy about it. I had a feeling she knew, because she's been suspiciously quiet the last few weeks. Well, I knew she would be angry, which is why I didn't tell her; and I'm fine with her silence because I know she has nothing nice to say.

How disappointing is it when people choose to make such judgements about other people's lives? This is my life, and I am doing what I want. Can it be so hard to fathom that I actually don't want to make the exact same choices as someone else? Do I not at least deserve the right to live my own life? Do I call people up and say "Oh God, how can you do this to yourself? I don't know how you can live that way! I can't believe what you are doing!" No, I don't. Because I don't expect other people to live like me. I live the way that makes me happy, but I know enough to realize that it wouldn't neccessarily make someone else happy. Hello, make your choice and be happy with your choice. Why don't I have that same right? How do my choices affect others so strongly that they can get that angry? It's MY life!

Ok, so rant over, now I can move my ticker up to the top, and post updates! Because I know there are waaaay more of you out there who are happy for me and share my excitement and support me. So here is my first update: 2 weeks ago I got to have an u/s and got a nice view of the baby:

11w 5d:


My next appointment is Sept 6, which should be a boring one. I may get another u/s at 20 weeks, and if so, hopefully I will get to see if it's my long awaited girl! or just another boy LOL

And Finally, the Pictures!

Ok, so starting with May (Yikes, it's taken me a long time to get to pictures!):

We took a trip back to State College to spend the weekend with friends of ours. These are the same friends who moved to New Zealand 2 years ago. Doesn't it figure that just after we move away, they move back home? Oh well. We had a great visit.

They had these sit-down scooters that the boys loved. They got very good at riding them down the driveway. Micah was best at both speed and steering.


Samuel takes a turn:


Noah kept wiping out, I think he may have been too big for them. Troyer tried a few times too, but scraped his knuckles trying to steer.

Levi loved their dog, who looks a lot like his Voof.


There was a hammock in the back yard, which all the kids loved. It was crazy watching them try to see how many of them could get on it at once, LOL


After they all fell off, we took a picutre of the whole group on the ground, where it was safer, LOL Notice Debbie and I are not in the picture ;-)



Then at the end of May, it was Caleb's birthday. He turned 6! He loved the whole Ninja Turtle theme this year.


Noah and Samuel saved the icing for last, then mixed it into green ooze. It was gross!


Caleb's card had a punch out mask, which, by the way, matches his Raphael sandals. It was pretty cool, though it was only card stock so it didn't last long.




At the very end of May I drove the kids down to my sister's house and she took us all to the National Zoo in DC. It was pretty warm, though after the last 2 months I have to say I'm glad we went when we did! The zoo is on a hill, so by the end of the day the walking is tough, but the kids did great. We parked in the lot at the bottom of the hill, so at least the second half back to the van was down hill.

Of course, the favorite parts of the zoo for the kids was not any of the animals, no. It was:

the water spritzers to cool you off as you walk




And the giant foam pizza playground


Can't find Levi? Look closer at the olive.




In June I took a trip down to my Dad's, and the kids started the rounds of camp.

After they all got home from camp, they had some friends come to visit from our old church in State College. They stayed for a week, and were here to help Samuel celebrate his 8th birthday!

Samuel had a homemade cake this year, because he really really wanted to have an orange flavored cake. Chris was happy about that, as it is his favorite kind too, and he hates bakery cakes. Samuel was thrilled with his cake "toy," which really was a toy, LOL



I think you can tell that getting this shot was NOT easy, and yes, this is the best out of the 10 I took! LOL

Since the heat was upon us, they spent every day in the pool.





After our visitors left, the boys started swimming lessons. They did great this year. Samuel was nervous again, and this was Caleb's first year of lessons. I was very proud of them for how well they did.

Finally July was over, and I could rest! Still stinking hot, at least in August I've been able to hide out in the house in the air conditioning!

Aimee came out with Danny and Katie for a long weekend, and the kids had a great time. We all wished their visit could have lasted longer. I had my camera ready, but somehow never got any pictures. I think Aimee has a few, so if she gets them developed and sends me copies, I can scan them in. Watch for them maybe around Halloween, LOL.

Last weekend we went to the picnic. The boys spent a lot of time in the pool, but so did I, so I don't have pictures of them swimming. After eating, Chris took them off to explore the property. It is a beautiful farm.

Going for an explore:


The pond:


Looking for frogs:


Looking for more frogs:


This is the walk up the driveway from the pond to the house. You can see from these pictures why Chris wants so badly to have a property like this for the boys.


The boys were excited to be able to pet the horses and feed them grass. The horses were very friendly.





And FINALLY, Levi celebrated his 2nd birthday! His birthday was really spread out over 3 days, since Troyer got home late from Baltimore on Sunday, and Levi had a drs appt on Monday. He didn't open the last of his presents until yesterday.



Levi eats with a fork! And actually gets the food IN his mouth!


Ok, that's it for now! Phew!