Our family . . . .

. . . . . is growing by two feet!!! We anticipate our new little one to arrive in early March!!!

So I am 13 weeks pregnant now, and starting to feel much better. I endured two stomach flues and several weeks of all day nautiousness! Now I have occasional icky moments and general fatigue. We heard the heart beat last week, which is always reassuring. Simon points to my stomach when asked "where is the baby?" He hugs and kisses the baby by hugging and kissing my tummy. We are so excited that our family is growing!

We never thought that Simon could have been a July baby when given his late June due date. He came late, but politely arrived on the last day of June - as he was due in June. So this time, we are fully prepared for a late February baby, but aren't so sure about a leap year baby with a birthday of February 29th!

One question that is always asked is "will you find out what you are having?" We will not, we loved the excitement of not knowing and the joy we felt when we met Simon! Another question is about our bedroom situation. We have a roomy two bedroom house, and plan to put both Simon and the baby in the same room. The toys will be reduced and moved into the living room and a twin bed will be added to his bedroom. The grand plan is to add up in a couple of years; having an in-house architect makes all things possible!

We're Safe, High, and Dry

We endured some pretty rough storms last Thursday. Around 3:15, my school went into the tornado warning mode until after school. The weather went from 90 degrees with 90%+ humidity to 70 degrees and breezy in a matter of 20 minutes! Another significant thunderstorm rolled through later that evening. A line of towns experienced a great deal of damage (the north side of Elmhurst, Villa Park, Lombard, Glen Ellyn, Wheaton, West Chicago) . Of course Chicago and the North/Northwest suburbs were hit equally as bad if not worse. Fortunately, we did not sustain any damage beyond the typical trical of water we get in our basement when the rain comes too fast or the ground is too saturated. Unfortunately, several of our friends and Eric's sister experienced significant tree damage. Eric's sister's power continues to be out (Sunday early evening). The aftermath is unbelievable, trees tipped over with the roots and clumps of dirt attached, every house on the block with tree trunks in their yards, blocks and blocks of downed trees, or trees resting on downed wires. Here are some images of the other side of our town. We live 1-3 miles from where these pictures were taken and are grateful for our situation! We have been helping our friends and family in any way that we can!

After the Storm

Storm_News_Article

A Fire Muster

This past Saturday, we went to downtown Glen Ellyn to enjoy a Fire Muster. Glen Ellyn was celebrating their 100 year volunteer fire department. The events started with a firetruck parade, all blaring their sirens! Simon just watched in awe and did not react to the noise. How lucky for a little boy to see his neighbory buddy, Wayne, drive a firetruck in the parade! Simon especially enjoyed climbing and playing in the trucks after the parade.

Breakfast with the Birdies

Each morning, Simon and I enjoy watching the birds eat breakfast. They are quite the little piggies, and can chow down on the whole feeder in one day! Simon generally runs to the window which scares the birds away. He then tells them to "come back" and "eat". Watching the birds is quite fun and an enjoyable part of our day. If we are lucky, we see gorgeous yellow finches.

Fun with Cousins!!!

An evening spent at Grandma and Grandpa's with the cousins!

Anwers to Simon's Quiz

Interpretations of Simon's words are below! Out of the two resonders, Grandma Wiens is the winner! She got 3/14 correct!

1. dibucks = hiccups
2. boo did = too big
3. dies = guys (referring to his Fisher Price people)
4. bup or dup = cup
5. moodics = music (which he asks for everyday)
6. goowa = gorilla (Goodnight Gorilla must be read before Goodnight Moon)
7. butties = Cubbies
8. Eee-uh = Christina (not quite attempting the "Aunt")
9. doo deh = do it again
10. betis = breakfast (which really is every meal, and when we pass McDonald's)
11. bubups = potato heads (first attempt when playing with a new toy)
12. dooz don = shoes on
13. aus = off
14. the answer to "Where is Daddy?" is baseball, of course, where else would he go all day long?

We did forget one of our favorite word attempts. "Debuk" refers to "ketchup", which is an essential dip for some yummy foods!

Simon's Quiz

Simon is repeating and saying new words everyday! It is so fun to hear his little voice and his attempts at some difficult and multi-syllabic words.

We have listed several of his most adorable words/phrases. Take the quiz either by leaving a comment or e-mailing us your interpretations. The person with the most correct will receive a small reward in the mail.

Good luck to all participants!!

1. dibucks
2. boo did
3. dies
4. bup or dup
5. moodics
6. goowa
7. butties
8. Eee-uh
9. doo deh
10. betis
11. bubups
12. dooz don
13. aus
14. the answer to "Where is Daddy?"

Venetian Night

Eric and I have always wanted to go to Chicago's lakefront for the annual Venetian Night. This year, we had no other plans and went down for the evening. We saw some boats with awesome decorations; then we saw some AMAZING fireworks. The show had displays that we never have seen before. Then we enjoyed coffee and dessert in a nice hotel lobby! A great way to spend a lovely summer evening.

Summer Fun

Karl, Linaea, and Simon enjoyed splashing in a pool, playing in a boat sandbox, and having fun in a big red house one hot summer morning! Three busy little people are hard to photograph together!