Back from the Beach

we just recently got back from the beach. it was wonderful and the girls did great. isabella napped on the beach in a cute little tent we bought her. the front of it had a mesh cover that zipped open and closed, and it had another mesh opening in the back so air could go through it. and, emma couldn't get enough of the ocean and pool. before we left for the beach, she kept saying that she was not going to swim in the ocean. the day we arrived, we barely started setting down our towels and she was racing into the water! it was great ... and, of course, not long enough as usual. so true that we in the u.s. do not get enough vacation time. do you think we have enough vacation time?

anyways, next year, i would love to go for two weeks.

Change

i haven't shared anything for awhile, and i always have so much to say ... so here's the latest ....

we started a new school year at my preschool. my new teacher ms. kelly is really nice. i have some of my old friends and some new friends in my class. i got a prize on my first day with ms. kelly for being a "star rester" ... i laid on my towel when we were supposed to. that's a whole new thing for me. i've never gotten to rest on a towel on the floor at school. it's kind of funny, but we all get to do it.

isabella started going to my school now too. she's been going now for about 2.5 weeks. i think she likes it too, and all my teachers were excited for her to start coming to school with us. she goes to the baby room. mommy said i used to be in that room too. it looks like they have lots of fun things to play with and her teachers are nice. so, i think isabella will like it a lot.

i told mommy the other day that we were going to the hospital this week. i explained to mommy that we were going to change (meaning exchange) isabella for the four new babies that mommy is having. mommy's eyes got really big when i said four new babies ... i wonder why?? anyways, i told her that the new babies would all be three years old so that they could play with me.

what do you think about that? i think it sounds like a good plan. not sure mommy is going to go for that though. well, i have to get ready for bed. i'll share more again soon.

Two months!

i thought i would send a little update now that i'm two ... almost two and a half ... months old. i had my two-month checkup the other day. i am now 12 lbs 2 oz and 24 inches, and i've been growing out of some of my outfits already. over the past few months, i met my nana and my uncle dennis. i also met my aunt jen and uncle nik and my cousins lukas and jack. and my farmor and farfar visited us as well. i've had lots of fun meeting my relatives. they all like to hold me a lot and i enjoy that, and i have lots to tell them too with my coos and smiles.


i've been smiling and "talking" lots lately. i have so much to say to everyone. i've really been enjoying the bouncy seat that miss vicki and mr. micah are letting us borrow. i love to watch the lights and the animals on the bar, and the music is fun too. i get so excited when mommy turns it on. i am sleeping longer at night ... about 6 hours now.

i've been going to the pool with everyone. i get a good nap when we go there. i just sleep in the stroller. it's great. and, i've been getting to meet more of mommy and pappa's friends.

i'll update you all more again soon as i'm sure i'll have plenty more to say!!

New Pictures

our friend, ms. rachel, took some pictures of me and my big sister. mommy wanted to give some pictures of us to pappa for father's day. i thought it was pretty fun. i don't think my big sis wanted to have her picture taken with me, and then she was really worried about the bugs. i'm not sure what the fuss was ... ms. rachel and mommy kept telling her that the bugs only like adults. hmmm ... anyways, i wanted to share a few of the pictures that ms. rachel took.

Reflections on Bed Rest

now that isabella is 7 weeks old, we've celebrated her one month birthday (and soon she'll be two months!!), i thought i would share some thoughts and reflections i've had on bed rest.

ok, having to lay down for four months certainly isn't my idea of how i want to spend my pregnancy. i was so frustrated after having the surgery that i was put on bed rest sooner in this preganancy than with Emma. but, being on this side of things now, i see that the stitch did help, and i have to say that i much preferred this version of bed rest compared to what i did with emma. anyways, here are some of the positives for home bed rest vs. those for hospital bed rest. yes, i could actually think of a few positives from the hospital!

+'s for home bed rest
* the food
* my own bed
* being with my family
* mcdreamy, jack bauer, vh1's top 20 countdown, & ellen
* theme song ... "chasing cars" by snow patrol ... if i lay here, if i just lay here ... :)
* a beautiful little girl born at 38 weeks ... one day after my birthday (what a wonderful birthday present)

+'s for hospital bed rest
* daily massages from the physical therapists ... as long as your pain level was high enough (mine was always quite high! ;-) )
* seated showers ... i never thought i would say that, but when you are restricted in movement and you're pregnant, a seated shower helps ... especially to shave your legs!! :)
* the ice chips ... love those ice chips at the hospital!!
* ellen, oprah, & the dr. phil family
* a beautiful little girl born at 33 weeks ... which you would never know today! ... two days after Christmas (what an awesome Christmas present)

so, would i do it again? that's the question that everyone has been asking ... funny thing is that when i had emma, i absolutely insisted that there was no way i would ever get pregnant again! and, here we are with our second beautiful child. this time around, i find myself not saying no quite as quickly ... but, i'm not quick to say yes either!! tom says he couldn't bear to watch me lay down like that again (or maybe i just drove him so crazy with my requests and anxieties that he doesn't want to go through it again!! ;-) ) for now, though, i just want to enjoy my sweet girls and leave whatever is meant for the future in the future.

On Being a Big Sister

so, i've been trying to figure out all this big sister stuff ... it's pretty cool that i'm a big sister now, but i sure wish my little sister could do more things with me. mommy says that she will be able to play with me someday, but i don't like waiting! i asked mommy the other day if isabella could go back in her tummy and mommy said she couldn't. i don't know why. nobody told me that there was a no return policy on little sisters.

i've been getting some really fun presents for becoming a big sister. i've been loving it! i got a cool present from mommy and pappa the other day for being a big sister ... a backpack and lunch bag for school that i can carry. they are pink and have my name on it. here are some pictures of me with my new bags.

i had my dance recital over the weekend. ms. sandi taught us a cool dance routine. we were the tinkerbells ... although, i liked calling myself fiona at rehearsal and cinderella the day of the dance. anyways, it was lots of fun and i liked having all the mommies and pappas clap for us. i even got a medal when i was done.

i will be trying a tumbling class this summer. i start at the end of this month. i am excited about that. i am also returning to see ms. tanya for my refresher infant swim resource classes at the end of this month. she taught me how to float and swim last summer, so i am going back in a few weeks for some refresher classes. our pool is opening in our neighborhood, so i want to be ready to swim.

well, i have to go take care of my babies. i'll share more with you soon.

I'm two weeks old!

it's been a fun adventure since i entered this big bright world two weeks ago. just before i left mommy's really cozy tummy, i could hear mommy yelling at pappa and the nurses, "i have to push!" and they all kept telling her "no, wait. you can't." i don't know what exactly was going on, other than i was trying really hard to get here to meet everyone. it's funny because for months everyone was making sure i stayed in mommy's tummy. then all day on my birthday they were wanting me to come out. then just minutes after mommy got some medicine and they layed her down, they were all telling her that i couldn't come now. i could hear all the nurses and the dr running around and then it was finally time. mommy didn't sound very happy. i felt bad and wanted to come and hug her. i was glad that i was able to see her not too long after all that commotion

since then, i've been doing all kinds of things. i went for my first car rides ... i'm not so sure that i like that little seat i have to sit in. but once the car gets moving, i usually fall asleep. i had my first dr visit last week. i really like my dr. she was so nice and called me a princess. the dr told me that i no longer had to be on my light bed anymore. i was happy to be off that hard bed and in a cozier place to sleep. and, mommy and pappa get to hold me more now that i'm off the light bed, which i really like. the nurse told me that i am now over my birthweight. that seemed to be a good thing as everyone cheered that. i've gone to the church and seen where emma goes to school. i've met some of emma's and mommy and pappa's friends. i also got to go shopping for the first time. we went to costco, target, and wal-mart. all the lights and noises made me look around and wonder what was going on. i got to go to my big sister's dance recital, and went out to dinner one night. and, i had my first picnic for mommy's day.

since then, i have been enjoying hanging out with my mommy and pappa. my big sister seems like lots of fun. she taps my bed a lot, and mommy and pappa tell her "no" ... i just keep my eyes closed so no one knows that i'm really trying to see what's going on! i am looking forward to playing with my big sister. well, i have some sleeping to do. but, i will update you all again soon!