lunch with daddy

daddy was going to take tuesday and wedenesday off to visit with nana so we thought that it might be nice to meet him for lunch on monday since we haven't done that in a while and that way nana could see the hospital. 

i think i have mentioned this ball display before, but this time i took some video.  the left side has been nonoperational every other time we have been to the hospital so it was neat to get the full effect.  mason was very taken with the open elevator shafts above/behind the ball display.  enjoy.  love.

(un)fortunate illness

i think madelyn's illness worked out just fine for nana.  she had been traveling since very early in the morning and seemed glad to nap on the couch with madelyn for a few hours (my flash and madelyn's cough right before this picture woke nana up - they were so cute).  

thankfully, madelyn never had a fever and was healthy by 3:30am the next day when she woke me up all chipper to get her some more water.  it was just a little 24-hour stomach bug that stayed away from the rest of us.  love.

mickey mouse clubhouse party

madelyn woke up at 3:30am to tell us that she had thrown up in her bed.  a few hours later she threw up in our bed...  it was going to be a long day and nana was arriving later that morning.  

i had signed the kids up for a free mickey mouse clubhouse party at the local library.  i had no idea what to expect but mason is really into mickey mouse right now so i figured it was worth checking out.  madelyn was devastated that she couldn't go.  she told me that she's "not sick, just throwing up".  that made it just that much harder to leave her at home while we went.  since daddy was going to stay home with madelyn, the boys and i would be picking up nana at the airport.  but first the party...

it didn't occur to me until we got there that i should have left maddux at home with daddy too since he wasn't old enough for the party.  it worked out fine that he participated too.  first there was a mickey mouse clubhouse book read and then they turned on music for the kids to listen to while visiting the different stations set up around the room.

mason didn't quite get the 'throw' part of the ring toss and was a little slow.

mason and maddux both enjoyed the play-doh station.  mason was happy to have blue and maddux was happy to do anything.  i have just started to let him use the play-doh at home since he is getting better about not putting everything in his mouth.  he did have some trouble keeping the rolling pin out though...

the 'snack' was a chocolate cupcake.  as i heard one parent say, "nothing like cake at 10 in the morning".  mason was nice enough to share a few bites of cake with maddux.

the event only lasted 30 minutes and each kid left with a piece of sidewalk chalk in a ziplock back with either a paper mickey or minnie mouse head stapled to it and the craft (a mickey mouse clubhouse party plate that they could tape streamers to - the effect was a kite).  i think we will try future events.  apparently this one was so popular that they scheduled a second one with just the wait list and there were still enough people for a third party but the room wasn't available.  i would guess that there were between 20 and 30 kids and their parents.  it was a little crowded but nothing stressful.  and mason loved it.  love.

'curly' hair

this is what we woke up to on friday morning.  madelyn was going to try to leave her braids in until saturday when we picked up nana, but just had to take them out first thing when she woke up on friday.  she was pretty delighted with her 'curly' hair.  (her teacher has curly hair so madelyn has asked to have curly hair.  i told her if she wears braids her hair will be very wavy like curls.)  surprisingly, it didn't really fall out during the course of the day either. 

when we went to the grocery store that afternoon i let her go in the kid's care (they only take kids over 3 - much to mason's dismay).  madelyn was wearing a purple and grey striped shirt with a snowman, a dressy, full, plaid pink and green skirt, blue knee-high socks with multi-colored hearts, and in her hair she wore a fuzzy purple headband.  the lady watching the kids asked her if it was 'wacky' day at school.  when i explained that madelyn always dresses like that she called her a "rebel" which madelyn though was "robber" and disputed.  then the lady told her that it was a good thing and would mean that she was very successful in life.  madelyn still wasn't buying it but wasn't quite as upset.  she is a free spirit and i just love it.  love.

26-ish weeks

i had matt snap a quick shot just shy of 26 weeks a few days ago.  and today i had my check-up.  maddux and i were a lot early, but there was a break in the rain so i went in instead of sitting in the car.  to my surprise they took me right back and i was in and out before my scheduled appointment time!  everything looks good.  i think i have put on 6-7 lbs so far and the heart rate was good.  i did measure a little big (she didn't say how much) which surprised me because i didn't measure 'big' with any of the others (even when madelyn measured two-weeks bigger in her ultrasound and maddux was a beast).  at least i don't have a recollection of measuring "big".

i am not super worried about the size of the baby since maddux was by far the easiest delivery, but this is a fourth and a boy so size has come up a time or two.  i am mainly hoping that we don't have to deal with jaundice again (which is more likely in larger babies and boys).  i have a second glucose test in three weeks (because maddux was such a big boy).  instead of giving it to me to drink at home, i drink it in the office and then sit in the waiting room for an hour watching the weather channel and trying to keep maddux occupied (at least the other two will be in school).  the last one was fine so i am not too worried.  they will also do an ultrasound around 38 weeks to see how big he is looking; the doctor did say that it is only 30% accurate at that point so she doesn't expect it to change her course of action.  i had a 40 ultrasound with madelyn because she had measured so big at 20 weeks and it said that she was going to be at least 10 lbs., but she was only 8 lb. 13oz.  the doctor feels that since i delivered an 11lb. baby with no complications, she doesn't really see a reason to worry too much about size without there being other health concerns (i.e. diabetes, heart rate, blood pressure, etc.).

and that is the latest.  just a normal pregnancy.  i am really glad it is the last one though.  i feel done.  i do love to see people's faces when i am walking into the grocery store (or anywhere) with all the kids by myself and my big belly.  i know i would have thought to myself "that woman is crazy".  but it isn't really bad at all.  i just have to go at the right time (i.e. no one is tired and no one is hungry).  love.

luke's birthday

all three kids were invited to chuck e. cheese to celebrate our neighbor luke's fourth birthday.  madelyn had practically been counting down the days because loves a "party" and was pretty excited about chuck e. cheese too.  its funny that she was so excited about the location since she had only been there once before and it was two years ago!  apparently, it had made quite an impression.

the party was right after school to try and avoid the crowds at c.e.c. so i had all three kiddos on my own.  it actually wasn't so bad since madelyn hung out with the birthday boy (with her in the first picture) and i just had to keep the boys together.

maddux had to climb into every seat and  didn't know which direction to head in first.

mason giving me a big high-five after a game of air hockey.

there were shark cupcakes after our pizza lunch (we ate lunch before games and took a break for the cupcakes).

luke's mom had made a less icing intensive cupcake for maddux that had a 'life preserver'  donuts on top (the stripes were fruit roll-up slices)

mason and madelyn had carefully selected luke's present and mason couldn't wait for him to open it.  mason didn't  try to help open it, he just kept giving it to him.  they had selected a dinosaur playmat/toybox, dinosaur book and some cars mini color sheets with markers.

and i got the 'mom of the year' award while trying to show the kids how to play skee ball.  the game kept timing out before they could roll all of the balls up the ramp so i was trying to roll between each of their tries while pulling maddux off the ramp that he kept trying to climb.  he choose to jump up for a return attempt just as i released a ball.  it hit him in the face.  i didn't realize how hard it hit him until i noticed a bruise just a few minutes later.  but that was the end of his climbing...

it was fun celebrating with luke and we feel lucky to have his family as neighbors.  love.

deck party

it was a little warmer today so i let the kids out on the deck to 'see if it was warm'.  they were having fun so i turned on some music (thanks to matt's super wiring during building) and let them have a dance party outside.  it is hard to tell which of them had the most fun.  they were out there almost an hour dancing and running around.  we had originally planned on stairs down from the deck, but because we don't have any i was able to make dinner while they danced (of course i can easily see them from the kitchen - and hear them).  they got a few looks from people walking on the trail...

maddux enjoyed ring around the rosie most of all!  daddy joined them for a quick turn when he got home too.  love.