The Going's On...

Well, Mother's Day weekend turned out really nice. Though Christopher had a big test on Monday, he took time to pamper me. He cleaned and made me lunch Saturday while I was at a meeting and spent time hanging out in the evening. Sunday, he got up with Kira, did dishes all day long, made dinner, gave me a super cute card (and the message he wrote up himself...I love those!), cleaned up after Kira threw up after church and did some more laundry. Most of all, he made me feel so appreciated for the little things I do everyday and gave me a break from having to do them! Can't beat that.

Kira has not been herself this week. Her appetite is gone, completely, and she's had some kind of stomach bug. She threw up again today but I think she's on the mend. Hopefully, this was just the closing act and she'll be back to her old self soon. I'm just so grateful that she's sleeping really well! It's nice to have the luxury of a full night's sleep while I can!

Christopher hasn't quite had the same luxury. Though by choice, he's been studying so hard and really trying to get through this week of exams and prepare for next week's finals by getting up in the middle of the night to go to school. He's done SO well this week and I'm so proud of him. I guess those 3 o'clock in the morning bike rides to school have paid off.

On Thursday, I had a doctor's appointment and it looks like I'm starting to get ready for baby #2 to come! I'm dilated to a 1 (nothing impressive, I know) and softening, which could mean a few more weeks, but it's nice to know that I'm progressing already. Now if only I could feel more prepared in other ways for Alexis's debut...

Random...

It's been a while since I've been on. Just thought that I'd update with a few pictures and such. I've been keeping busy with some projects...yes, I'm actually getting them done! Yea!! Still need to go through baby clothes and stuff and get all of that ready. I can't believe that we only have a little over a month before we'll be holding another little girl in our arms...very exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time. I remember having everything ready months before Kira was here (well, what I thought was "ready", being a novice). Here we are today at 34 weeks.

Like I said, I've been working on some projects, mostly in the girls' room. I had the wild idea that I could actually sew some curtains for their room without patterns and using some random material that I thought was cute. Well, it's finally done. At least it looks good in the picture!

I had a doctor's appointment today that went pretty well. Still measuring a little small, but after a quick ultrasound, everything looks fine. I just have small babies that like to settle head-down, low in my pelvis early and then stretch themselves out under my ribs. Makes sense why I look so small yet feel black and blue inside! And I've officially passed weight I was when I delivered Kira! Another yea!! Hopefully I can gain a few more pounds before Alexis is ready to get going!

And here's Kira's glamour shot. She did the makeover herself...can barely tell, can you? She loves getting into drawers and shelves in the bathroom. Of course, my make-up is her favorite naughty activity. She looks a little out of it here, partly because it's in the morning after she woke and because she knows she's been caught...it's more like a mugshot, if you ask me.

I like this one better! She's making an "uh-oh" face but is just trying to pose...not in trouble, yet!

I noticed that I don't post a whole lot about Christopher, which doesn't seem very fair to me sometimes. I just don't know what else to tell except that he's at school almost everyday except Sunday and when he's home, we just hang out. He did get elected as Secretary for the Radiology club at school and is waiting to hear about becoming a Student Ambassador next year. He had a pretty nerve-wracking test yesterday (thank you for prayers, family) which he did really well on and I'm so happy for him. He works so hard. I'm so glad he'll be home when the new baby comes...at the same time, it would be nice to have a time to travel or have some fun while he's home. He's a big homebody anyway, so I'm sure just being at home with no school to worry about for a little while is vacation enough! He's the best!!

Swinging...

This past weekend was a long one for our family, in a good way. Friday, Christopher had "Wellness Day" which means no school! Though he did go back to school that morning and study into the afternoon, it was nice to know that he'd be home later and really "be home". Despite the wet and cooler weather, we planned a BBQ with some friends on Saturday. It turned out well even though it was quite cold, especially for Kira since we showed up 45 minutes early to get the grill and burgers going before everyone started to show up. And we figured she'd have some fun on the playground before trying to get her to sit and eat. Well, not that she wasn't already, but I think we've created an even bigger obession with swings. That's ALL she wanted to do the three hours we were there! But just sitting and having the cold wind blow in your face doesn't keep you warm. Needless to say, she remained shivering the whole time but would stubbornly insist on swinging. I wonder where she gets that from...? Now that's all she asks for every time we get into the car and heaven forbid we pass a playground! But we had fun and I'm glad she was able to spend some time outdoors. Of course, the next day, the weather was absolutely beautiful- sunny, 60's, clear skies...and we spend most of the day indoors since it was Sunday and church for us is in the middle of the afternoon. But today is pretty nice as well, so I think Kira and I will pull out her new slide and play in the dirt. I have cucumbers, herbs, strawberries and flowers that I would like to get planted soon so I need to clear out our little patch of garden while it's nice outside. Well, we had a nice weekend and we were so happy to spend it with Christopher. It's a bummer that the nicest weather comes when he's indoors all day but at the least the bike ride home should be pleasant ;)!

This is Kira laughing at her daddy...she was laughing harder earlier but as soon as the camera comes out, it dies down, of course.

Singing...

Kira has become quite the singing star...at least, she is at home in front of us. She won't do it for the camera so I tried to tape her singing "Popcorn Popping" on our webcam (hence the poor picture quality) but she couldn't understand where Kira went when I minimized the screen so she'd actually sing. Anway, hopefully I can catch her singing a little bit more. I didn't even know that she knew this song that well until she randomly started singing it to herself in the bathtub.

A quick update on Kira: She's practically over her cold, but with her immune system so overworked, we've stayed home quite a bit this past week. There are a few children that have had the same bout of Rotavirus that was followed with a cold of some sort, so I guess it's still going around. She's starting to sleep through the night a little better and hopefully today, she will take a real nap! She looks so much better and she sounds more like herself. Hopefully, we've had our share of sickness for a while. We're ready to be outside and play with friends again!

(Sorry about the picture...hopefully you can understand what she's singing!)

Cinderella shoes...

These are some dress up shoes that Kira got for her birthday from Gee and Mike! It was great timing because she's been really into Cinderella lately so we call them her "Cinderella shoes". (She's still sick in this video, so she looks kinda out of it.)

(Just realized that the video isn't right...I had spliced two together and you can hear the audio of both but only see the second part...sorry!)

Happy Birthday...

Due to Kira's illness, we opened some gifts on her birthday to take her mind off of how bad she was feeling, but we didn't have cake and songs until yesterday. Thank you for all of your birthday wishes and gifts. Sorry to those who were greeted with a less than enthusiastic birthday girl on the phone. But we appreciate your love for Kira. I can't believe how much she's grown and changed since her last birthday. Our little princess.

Trying my hand at Kira's birthday cake

Taking a bite

Looks like it's not too bad

A little messy...still super cute

Easter...

Easter was really nice. It's funny to think that Kira had had three Easters before she was two! It came pretty early this year. On Saturday, Christopher and I took Kira up to the school for an Easter egg hunt. There were eggs everywhere! This was Kira's first egg hunt and I think that she really enjoyed it. It was pretty cold outside, though. The next morning (Easter), we woke to snow on the ground--yuck. So much for flowers, green grass and the renewal of spring. But, of course, that's not the true meaning of Easter. We mentioned several times about Jesus's resurrection to Kira but it's not as if much of it was understood. After an uplifting church meeting, we joined some friends for dinner and yet another Easter egg hunt. I didn't get pictures of that hunt, but it was fun to watch Kira actually understand her mission of seeking out those pretty colored eggs and claiming them for her basket. Dinner was wonderful and it was nice to get to know some of Christopher's classmates and their families a little bit better. However, two days later, Kira surprised us by presenting with rotavirus. It was awful! It took the poor baby a week to get over it and she's still battling some nasty diapers, but at least stuff's coming out that end and not the other. We're so grateful that she was able to stay hydrated enough to stay out of the hospital and that Christopher and I have remained in good health through it all. Lots of sleepless nights and tears (not just Kira's) but I think we're back to normal now. It definitely put a damper on Kira's birthday celebration, though!