Oops, we did it again...

Baby #2 Coming March 21, 2011!

This is how we shared the news with family! Rowan is wearing the shirt in many previous pictures but there were no clear shots of the shirt, so here it is! You can see she wore it hard, there are a few stains I was unable to get out! Oh well!

So today I am 11 weeks. I am going to do my best to journal this pregnancy, because I have come to realize I did a very poor job of it when I was pregnant with Rowan!

So here it goes...I had a positive pregnancy test on July 14th! We have been trying or not trying (not sure what to call it) since probably January but for some reason it just wasn't working. My goal was to have #2 before 2010 ended, but that didn't happen obviously. In June I ordered some ovulation tests, and used them, but they never told me I ovulated! So apparently I didn't use them early enough or often enough, because that is the month it happened. NOt sure how that works!

My first MD appointment was at 8 weeks (August 9th). Had an ultrasound done, blood work drawn, etc. Now we don't go back until 13 weeks, and will have a First Trimester Screening done at that time, which consists of an ultrasound and lab work. With Rowan, I didn't do any extra screening, but for some reason this time I feel like I should, just need piece of mind. We wouldn't do anything extreme obviously unless there was incompatibility with life of course, but I just feel I need to know this time. There is more than just Ed and I in this family this time, so we would like the opportunity to plan more.

So you are probably thinking, they are for sure going find out the sex this time then! NOT! We don't plan to find out again. I/We have had thoughts of sealing the answer in an envelope and opening on Christmas for fun, or just keeping it in case something would happen to a family member and we would want them to know. But that would be the only reason to open it! But we haven't really discussed it much.

I have been feeling really pretty good overall. There is a fine line between being starving, nauteous and full already. As long as I eat small and frequent snacks I for the most part okay. Have had a few headaches, nothing unmanageable thus far. Only one horrible day when it was just Rowan and I home and I had a headache and threw up once. And I hope that doesn't happen again.

And yes, I am already showing, if you call it that. I consider it just being fat. I wake up in the morning with a fairly flat stomach, then eat a meal and am fat and bloated the rest of the day! It's great! I have even been told I look to have a baby bump! Super! Not exactly an ego booster at 11 weeks gestation! Oh well, have to get used to the idea of gaining weight again! Oh, and my MD wasn't thrilled with the 40 pounds I gained with Rowan, she said I should be more in the 25-30lb range, no pressure! Luckily, plenty of my friends and family have reassured me with what their docs have told them, essentially 40 lbs is okay, if I lost it the first time, I will lose it again! Thanks Molly!

Alright, this post is getting nauteously long, will add more pregnancy ideas to future posts. Thanks for all the Congrats thus far!

Aunt Da and Uncle Icko...

That is the best spelling I have to describe how Rowan says Amanda and Mitchell! They came up to visit Sunday evening and spent the night with us. We did some school shopping today for Mitchell, and did some extreme playing and napping, and that pretty much sums up their visit. Then they were on their way home after dinner, they both start school on Wednesday! Amanda's last semester of college!

Rowan's shoes...

...a girl after her Mom's heart!

Rowan frequently visits my closet and wears my shoes around the house, but apparently they aren't mine anymore! She likes the sound these make on the tile floor! Too funny.

Oh, and the other pics are her acting like a monkey to get to her diaper! Very naughty!

Cousin Time...

While Molly and I were preparing for the shower today, Blayne, Eddie and Papa took the kids to Lowe's to build a project. Kieran does this frequently back home, so we thought we would see what Rowan thought of the experience too. She is definitely a girl, and definitely 2! Lost interest once her dad opened the package of parts! But they all got to spend time together!

Many super cute pictures of Rowan, Kieran and Grady! Rowan sure held on tight to her baby Grady! And both Kieran and Rowan loved sitting on the tractor! They play so well together! Wish we could do it more often. They are going to come visit in a couple weeks!

Bridal Shower...

....honoring, Dustin and Julie!

Molly and I threw a shower for Julie this weekend in Belvidere, IL. We chose to throw it there because we thought it was most centrally located for all of the friends and family to travel to. And Aunt Jill was willing to open her home to us for the festivities.

Our original plan was a Citrus themed shower for the women, and the men were going to be go golfing. But plans changed, and therefore our theme and menu pretty much went out the window. So we re-planned an easier menu to feed men and women alike, but kept the color scheme. On the menu were Chicago Dogs, Pork burgers, Chicken Penne Pasta Salad, Potato Salad, Chips, Salsa, and a Sundae Bar too! The only citrus theme item we kept were Orange cookies (because they are Julie's favorite), and they were the party favors for all who attended.

We had a beautiful day that we spent outside playing bean bag toss, washers, wiffle ball (I think that ended before the shower started because Blayne and Eddie broke the balls), and of course some plain old visiting among family and friends. The group photo was taken after some guests had already left, but it is our immediate Smith family, the Specks, the Knotts, DAve, Cathy, and LInda!

Oh, and a disclosure on the Peace Sign. Julie's brother and sister in law ordered her a cheese platter that they registered for from Potterybarn, and instead they got a light up Peace sign from PB Teen. They were wondering why the box said PB teen on it! That'll teach ya to open the box!

We didn't do any standard shower games. But Rick and Jill took a trip to Chicago the week before to video tape Dusty answering some questions, and then put on a mini Newlywed game for all to enjoy. Poor Julie was quite embarrassed with some of the questions they had to answer! And Dusty even kept it G rated in his responses. It was very cute and entertaining!

Then of course there were gifts. The kids opened most of them for Julie I think. And lucky for her they ripped lots of bows, therefore leading to many children in her future!

Here are a few pictures of the kids, most of whom are in the wedding. Rowan and Kaitlyn are flower girls, and Tommy and Kieran are ring bearers. They are all going to be so darn cute!

All in all it was a wonderful laid back day. Ended up being a bit long, since Rowan was up at 530am, and we were on the road to Belvidere just after 7am. And didn't get home that night until just before 10pm. But it was a great time spent with family and friends!

Hump Day...

I have to apologize for this random, boring post. I have been absent for the last week because I worked Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Then Monday thru today have been without a vehicle (just some standard maintenance on both vehicles). So it has been quite boring around here. No place to go, just catch up on laundry, cleaning the house, and some quality time with Rowan!

Friday night, Grandma and Grandpa Bremberger spent the night. They made the trip to exchange some items with us and a very brief visit. They were barely here 15 hours. We had some dinner when I got home Friday night, and they left after breakfast Saturday morning to head to Pickerel. This super cute tote was one of the exchanges. They bought Rowan two toy totes from PBK, and this big one was defective so we had to exchange. Too bad she doesn't use it for toys yet. And heaven forbid I take a picture of her. She wants me to take pictures of Elmo and Grinch! Boring!

This a random addition. This frame I got for one of Rowan's baby showers. And I have it displayed in the bathroom. I think I was supposed to replace the picture with one of her, which clearly hasn't happened. But this is a picture of myself, Casey, Andi, and Ashley (my cousins) when we were little. I will have to look and see if I have a picture of all of us now! Sorta cute!

4 Years already...

Time sure flies when you are having fun with your best friend!

Today is our 4 Year Wedding Anniversary! Our wedding day seems so far in the past now. So much has changed and we have come so far since then! Sorta sad, but exciting at the same time!

Many more years to come!

I love you Ed!

Girls day...

Rowan and I got to spend the day visiting with Crystal and Kenadee! They came up for a day trip visit! It was much overdue and very fun catching up and letting the girls play. Kenadee was very into watching Rowan and her every move. And Rowan was very into Kenadee and being a big helper.

Apparently Kenadee isn't a big car person, but she did well on the ride up! And you would never know that she was lacking in sleep this morning. She was a very well natured little girl, and tolerated Rowan and I smothering her just fine. Wish we could get together more!

This evening, we had Rowan outside again since the weather was so nice. She is getting better and better at the pedal idea with her tricycle. And to this day, the button on her 4-wheeler still excites her just as much as the very first time!

No good very bad day...

The morning didn't start well, as Rowan woke up with a puffy eye from a pesty mosquito bite by her eyebrow. These pictures are taken later in the day and really don't do it justice.

Then, at daycare, we were faced with our 4th owie slip! Rowan was bit in the arm by another girl. And this time, there is evidence! Let's just say Mom wasn't very happy, and the teacher didn't give me the time of day! I feel like 4 occurrences (always the recipient) in 6 months is a bit extreme! Time to graduate to the bigger kid room!

Extreme Makeover Home Edition...

...is doing a home on the street next to Rowan's daycare. So dropping her off and picking her up from daycare today was interesting. Here are a few pictures that I took from my phone.

The second picture (I'm not sure if you can read it..) says Lady Gaga on the bus sign, but as I was strapping Rowan in her carseat, these are the people who walked out of the bus. I haven't watched the show in years, but I think her name is Paige, the one with the pink hard hat. Must have been time to shoot! Sort of cool.

The information I have heard about the family and home is that the dad is a music teacher in one of the local elementary schools. He has 5 children and his wife stays home. Their previous home was 500 sq. feet. And the new home will be 4,000 sq. feet and a two story amongst the previous 500 sq foot homes! Will probably look quite interesting when all is said and done. Might have to drive by when all of the popularity wears off.

We had to sign a release form just in case the kids got filmed while outside playing at daycare, so watch for Rowan! Not sure when the show will air!

Fabulous Sunday...

Today was the best day weather wise we have had in forever. We were able to turn off the air and open the windows, all day long! We could even play outside for an extended period of time without sweating profusely (maybe not Ed, but he would agree the weather was awesome).

This morning we were outside for awhile, then had a great lunch. Ed made a pork butt in the smoker over night, so we had pulled pork sandwiches for lunch. Then took a nap, played a bit inside, then had dinner and headed outside for a little more playtime and conversing with the neighbors. Rowan was not happy when I had to drag her in the house for a bath and bedtime. Hopefully the fresh air today will mean for a sleeping in tomorrow! I can only pray!

We got out the bikes today for a little practice. She still has a lot of work to do. But we did manage to keep the helmet on for a period of time. She hasn't even mastered how to steer her 4-wheeler that she got for her 1st birthday. Sure would make it easier on my not have to help her maneuver out of her nooks due to her lack of steering! Oh well! Someday!

Ed also decided to hang the signs up in the garage that we have been storing for years. I am now afraid to have the garage open when playing outside during the day. Can't wait for the first cop to drive by and ask where we got all these signs from. Clearly we bought them at a garage sale! Better yet, my husband bought them before I knew him! Ha! Perfect!

Where's your...

...foot, mouth, nose, hair, ear, tongue, belly, teeth...

The only way I can get the girl to look at the camera for a picture these days. Still super cute!

Farmer's Market

...in Appleton.

We have been frequenting the market in Appleton for at least the last month, every Saturday. This week I braved the embarrassment of taking pictures. I wasn't the only one with a camera, although the others were probably working for a newspaper or something. Who cares!

The flowers are always amazing every week too, I can't believe the number of people who purchase those. We are there for the veggies and mini donuts! Rowan generally stays in her stroller for the first half of the trip, and then likes to get out and wander with us, and snack of course. They usually have fresh cheese curds too.

Packages...

This week we received our second blog book that I created. This one was much less work thanks to the collaging of pictures. The first book was Rowan's 1st Year, and from now on they will just be family books (Smith Family Connection) hopefully yearly if I can keep up.

I know I just posted about Rowan's flower girl dress, but I received it in the mail the next day. And I didn't think the web pictures were easy to see, so I took a few of my own. Haven't tried it on yet. We have time for that!

Random likes these days...

First of all, Tinkerbell aka Bell, has got to be worn out from all of the playing she gets these days. Good bye Baby Signing Time, hello Tinkerbell. It is perfect though when you just need a little quiet time.

Blankets....heaven forbid we have 1 or 2 blankets out, we need them all out, all of the time. They are carried all over the house. Frequently covering up which ever animal/doll is taking a nap, and sometimes Mom and Dad too.

Then there are the cups we are using up from the many 2 year birthday parties this year. We use them for snacks most days. And why not sit in the corner of your room, in a tote not meant for a 2 year old. Hey, whatever floats your boat honey!

Surprise Visit...

..we don't get these often since we don't have any family or friends really in the area yet.

But who says they have to live in the area.

Grandma and Grandpa Knutson, Aunt Amanda and Uncle Mitchell made a surprise visit today. They took the day off to do the Lambeau Field tour and stop in for a visit. This was all of their first times here (except Amanda). So Rowan gave them the grand tour and entertained them for about an hour. She sure is goofy!

Cereal...

..in the living room = Naughty!

So Rowan had cereal for breakfast this morning. Decided she was done, but I left the bowl on the table. A short while later she came back for more. Then while I was cleaning up in the kitchen, I noticed that she, and the cereal bowl were missing from the table.

Yup, sure enough, she took it to the coffee table in the living room and was standing and eating while watching television! Luckily the milk mess wasn't too bad. But that will never happen again. Not sure where she learned that one from.

Oh, and she is sporting her newest pajama addition. 'Momo' courtesy of Nana. These are all she wants to wear now. I have a feeling they will wear out fast due to all the washing and wearing!

6:40 am...

it's a miracle...

That is how late Rowan slept today! She hasn't slept past 6am since she has been sleeping in a big girl bed. She has been doing pretty well overall. There has only been 1 night that she has gotten out of bed in the middle of the night, but she went back to sleep after being escorted back to her room. But getting up at 530am on average, everyday, makes for an early nap! Last night she even slept through the very loud thunder! IMpressive!

Random pictures to come later of Rowan's recent obsessions!

Flower Girl to be...

Rowan is going to be a flower girl in Dusty and Julie's Wedding in November. Here is her dress! Just ordered it today! Rowan and Julie's niece, Kaitlin are going to be flower girls, and Kieran and Tommy (Julie's nephew) will be ring bearers! Super cute! Hope she makes it down the aisle!