Fourth of July with a Bang

Since I was 38 weeks pregnant we stayed in town this 4th of July.  We headed over to Kevin and Tammy’s for their annual firework extravaganza.  Kirk and Papa had been setting off some smaller fireworks for Eliza over the previous weeks so that she was somewhat prepared for what was to come.   There are so many fireworks to set off that our family can’t even wait for it to get dark.

I have had contractions (ugh) for the past few weeks.  I normally have about three an hour, but it can vary a lot.  While enjoying the fireworks I noticed that they were coming more and getting a bit more uncomfortable.  After waiting a while they didn’t seem to be changing so I timed them to be about 5 minutes apart.  After getting Eliza home with Gram we headed to the hospital to see if anything was going on.  They watched the contractions for a while and saw them start to taper off so we were sent home and told it would be “soon.”  Seven days later we are still waiting.

Eliza loved the fireworks that dropped the “parachute men”

The infamous Value Jet, an annual tradition of strapping fireworks to a glider for repeated launches until it breaks/melts

Hot Enough to Boil Shrimp

Last weekend our friends hosted their second annual shrimp boil.  It was a warm night with hot food, but it was oh so delicious!  Eliza spent the night with her Gram and Papa so Kirk and I enjoyed a night out together (which may be our last for a while).  Shrimp, corn, Andouille sausage, potatoes, onions, lots of Old Bay, and Bell’s Oberon – hard to top!

There’s nothing like eating off of paper with only your fingers!

Grilled peaches and ice cream for dessert.

Tony found some paper lanterns at a fireworks store and we sent one off.  It was beautiful to see it go up at night, and amazing how far away you can see the flame.

We took a picture of our house church before the two new members arrive.  Laura went into labor four days after this was taken with their son Riley.  We hope that we can join the club in the next few days!  We were also excited to celebrate Tony and Meredith getting engaged!

Daddy’s Oldest Daughter

They look alike don’t you think?

Photos taken during our 4th of July festivities.

Hoping that Daddy’s youngest daughter makes her appearance soon!

Trying to Get Things Done

Here is what happened when I was trying to get the house under control for baby sister to come!

My jewelry box was invaded!

Father’s Day

Kirk spent Father’s Day working down in the basement, but he took a few days off this last week and we had one day playing all together. We called this his Father’s Day. Normally Kirk doesn’t get to go to the Children’s Museum with us so we packed up and went for a few hours. Eliza loved showing daddy all that she has found in her exploration at the museum in the past few months. There were also some things that Eliza hasn’t been able to do because of my belly like crawl through a cave, so we put those on the to-see-list for the day as well! Later in the day there was a nap involved for the whole family and then we finished it all off with Waffle Cone Wednesday at TCBY. Thank you for all you do for us! We love you and Happy Father’s Day, everyday!

We loved the new exhibit Treasures of the Earth which is were all these pictures were taken.

A Van with a Plan

We are now officially minivan owners.  Bring on the baby!

Eliza calls it “Eliza’s new van” and wants to play in it everyday.  Thankfully she doesn’t know it has a DVD player yet, but she gets plenty of entertainment out of pushing the button to open and close the side doors and pretending to drive.  We’re pretty excited about the extra space, clean interior, low miles, and four stow-and-go seats (which have already come in handy hauling flooring).

Anyone want to buy a 2000 Buick Century?  It’ll be a bit sad to see her go.

Outdoor Fun

This summer has been great fun with Eliza.  She wants to go outside all the time and play no matter the heat or rain.  It may not bother her right now but it is killing me!  I may not always love soaking up the sun, but I have been trying to soak up all the one-on-one time with Eliza this last month that I can.  I remember asking my parents for years for a baby brother or sister, so I find that I have more excitement about giving Eliza a sister then I have guilt about taking something (me!) away from her.  Eliza says that she wants baby sister to come out and seems very excited (as are we)!  She picked out a little blanket that is similar to her “lambie” to give to baby sister at the hospital.  I pray that the transition will go well and that Eliza (and we) are prepared for the changes that are quickly to come!  

It has been hard to get Eliza to look at the camera and smile, but I found that if I ask her to count to ten for me I can get a long look.

A few things that Eliza loves to do outside right now are water the flowers and garden, pick food from the garden, play with the hose, and play with bubbles.  This week I got a few pictures of our bubble time.  She has more fun pushing the button on the bubble machine than she does with the bubbles.

Eliza was very helpful when I planted the flowers this summer, and that was handy as it’s been harder and harder to bend down!

We’ve been playing with Jack and Brody from across the street a lot.  Last week we went to a local city park that has a water area.  Once Eliza warmed up to getting wet she had a blast!

Jack wanted to get a photo of himself jumping.

Getting Ready for Baby Sister

Eliza talks all day long about her baby sister.  She has even shared her opinion on what we should name her.  We’re deciding between two names, so we’ll she if she wins!
We also got our double stroller last week and Eliza loves to talk about holding little sister’s hand and sharing snacks while on future walks.  So far we’ve had to put her baby doll or Otis in the empty seat on our walks – it certainly confuses Otis.

Another Trip to the Children’s Museum

We hadn’t been to the Children’s Museum for a few weeks and everyday Eliza would ask to go.  Last week we took a few hours to go play.

We spent some time in the story room singing songs and reading books. This was something that we hadn't done before, and Eliza loved it.

She’s getting good at taking care of pretend babies – here’s hoping she’s as good with the real thing!

Memorial Day

Our neighbors got together for a little evening grill-out on Memorial Day.  It was so terribly hot that the water guns and sprinkler were a necessity for the kids.  Eliza had so much fun playing that she wouldn’t eat dinner.   It was a great way to kick off summer but we’re rooting for the temperatures to drop a little.

Locked and loaded

What a straight shooter

It’s like nineteen squirt guns at once!

You’ve got to ask yourself one question: “Do I feel lucky?” Well, do ya, punk?

Weeeeeeeeeeeeee