Last Day of Summer Break

Last day of Mommy's summer break :-( I picked James up from school early and we met up with Gma Chele and the Wehrle's at Pirates Cove for some amusement park fun!

ARRRR! Ahoy there, Matey!


By far, his favorite "ride" was the hand-cycle trains -- he went around and waited in line 4 times for them!

Abby, Bella and James



Last ride -- what a fun afternoon!



1st Bowling Trip

Today Jamie and I embarked on a little adventure with the boys -- their first bowling trip!!! AMF Bowling lanes offer 2 free games/day in the summer (awesome), you just have to rent shoes -- score! James did great following rules and only almost double-bounced the ball off his toe when trying to put it away (we didn't even ask him to clean up). He started with trying to push the ball down the alley himself but then gladly took the ramp when the pro brought it over for him to use. Logan even got a couple of turns in (which were his brother's idea)! James got a 67 for his first game -- pretty awesome -- and decided it was time to go home for lunch after the 7th frame in game 2. Such a great way to beat the 103 degree heat today!

Logan's First Week

Logan's first week was filled with visits from family and friends and lots of sleeping (for him) and eating (also for him). He is eating about every 2 hours, which equals one tired Mommy, especially when he needs to be supplemented after each feeding (until next dr. visit) and then I have to pump to keep the milk supply up. Logan and Mommy have been staying downstairs as much as possible for Mommy's incision to heal from the c-section and to keep it a bit more quiet so James doesn't wake up at night. We have gotten into a nice little routine and my TV crush on Jimmy Fallon has been renewed :-)
Logan v. Teddy :: Week 1
Logan's belly is almost the size of Teddy's, must have just eaten!

Love those chubby cheeks -- just so darn kissable :-* MWAH

1st sponge bath from Daddy! We've been lucky enough that Jim could stay and work from home for the first two weeks. He has been amazing at doing pretty much everything non-Logan related around the house (and some of that even, too) and working almost a full day. What a trooper! We Love you, Jimmy/Daddy!!!

I sent Jim to the bi-annual re-sale they have in Hoffman with a very specific list. He did a fantastic job finding clothes for both boys (James and Logan are different seasons, so not all the hand-me-downs work this time around) and found this Maclaren double stroller at quite the bargain! Got it for under $100, normally at least $180 used and $290 new. Is very gently used and was only missing the rain cover and possibly a drink holder -- SCORE!!! James was soooo excited to share a stroller ride with his brother, so we attempted a family walk down the street before dinner on Sunday (James was restless from being trapped inside all day). The boys all did great, I only made it to the Wehrle's house and had to stop w/ belly pain and asthma (allergies have been nuts and it was my first time moving lots outside -- also put two and two together later to determine I'm probably allergic to tiger lilies, which were in the beautiful bouquet of flowers Jim and James got me in the hospital and was now in our kitchen -- kept wondering why it only triggered in the hospital and when by the kitchen sink! Happened with James too -- only breathing issues once those tiger lilies opened up)! I can't wait to use this stroller more, it did the trick!

Splash Park

We visited a splash park on one of James' days off school. The neighbors and a friend of Jim's from elementary school and her daughter met us there. What a great, enclosed space...and cheap! Only $3 per person! James loved all the aqueducts and trying to figure them out.
He was also ecstatic to pretend to be a firefighter!!! Here, the only picture I could get of him and Jillian "playing together" :-) She's in the green, and, believe it or not, 2 months younger than James! I'm going to start teaching her volleyball now!

Our Fireman!

Water war with Abby

Both Mommas with version 2.0 on the way! Katy is due about a month ahead of us (although at time of this posting, she has yet to deliver and we're probably being moved up, so they may only be just over a week apart)!

32 Weeks of Cookin' Cash

32 weeks of cookin' Cash = 1 huge Momma! Jim and I are convinced he's going to be bigger than James, although the weight gain is still right about even (12 lbs with 7 weeks left, perfect for a pound a week)! Went to the doctor on Tuesday, July 19 and all is looking good! Holding steady at 14cm of amniotic fluid (normal 10-25) and he is DEFINITELY a boy ;-) haha! He's moving around a ton and has finally flipped himself into the head-down position (thank you for a bit of breathing relief) although he's on the edge of my pelvis walls, pushing out a bit (not so much thank you for the continued pelvic pain). His heart rate is consistent, still at 146bpm (perfecto!) Going to appointments once a week now and non-stress tests starting in 2 weeks -- getting close, better get ready for C$ to come!!!
Jim won a lottery for 2 free tickets to the VIP opening of the new Rivers Casino. I was the lucky one to be his date, so we enjoyed a night of awesomeness (technically, there is a basement below it that has water in it to count as being on water) as James hung out with the Schillingers.

One of my favorite parts :: the parking garage has colored lights above each spot so you can tell if the spot is open or not without having to drive down the aisle (although I wouldn't trust them, some were green that had cars in them)!

They had some interesting characters walking around all night with plates of desserts and other samples. Something I over heard, the imported wooden design on the ceiling in this picture cost approximately $3 million.

The delicious desserts at the buffet -- we came back just before leaving for a re-tasting :-)

The way my VIP card hung made it look like Cash was the VIP and I was just the body who was transporting him around :-)

Brookfield Zoo

James and I found a cooler day to enjoy our zoo membership with the Wehrle girls! We had a great morning/afternoon and both took good naps afterwards :-) Of course, each zoo trip must start with a ride on the carousel! James picked a kangaroo (which he saw later and was so excited).
Bella, James and Abby -- our happy zoo-sters!

James was sooo excited that one of the first animals we saw were the horsies -- these are actually some Polish ponies of which I could not even try to spell or say correctly (it started with "Pzt" or something impossible, a girl didn't even have a chance)

The bald eagle was very cooperative for this picture (which I hear doesn't happen often)

Arlington Park with A. Cass & U. Brian

Aunt Cassie and Uncle Brian came up for a weekend of Chicago fun. They went to the White Sox game on Friday after they got here (Easton loved this as he got some play time with Ollie). On Saturday, we went to see "horsies runnin' " at Arlington Race Track.
A brave, very trusting, very fast, 2-year old is tough to chase after all afternoon!!! I took him down to the free country music show in between some of the races -- he was entranced :-)

After a tough day of picking winners (he is pretty good at it), James finally fell asleep and gave us all a break from chasing him down in the crowds. We all had a great time and both Jim and I ended up winners for the day after the Belmont Stakes race -- WOO HOO! That never happens!

First Swim Lesson

Time for swim lessons! I want James to learn to swim the proper way, so now that he's bigger and can grasp concepts better, we decided swim lessons were a good way to learn how to swim properly and water safety so Grandma's pool is more fun for James and less stressful for me (kids with more exposure to pools have greater risk for drowning, certified lessons help reduce this risk). The first lesson started with SCREAMING for the first 15-20 minutes. He calmed down and actually started to enjoy himself when I sat him on the side of the pool and had him kick water at me :-) Thanks to Daddy for being our photographer!

Each lesson since this one has gotten much better!

Lesson 2 :: James used a bucket to dump water on Mommy and even let me dump it on his back and would throw his shovel in the water and then "jump" to me and kick his way over to get it Lesson 3 :: Daddy got in this time and James was thrilled to dump water on him and swim after the shovel again -- he let Daddy pour water from the bucket on the back of his head (side note: baths have started to get a bit less traumatic again about this lesson)

Lesson 4 :: James and Dad did about 50 laps back and forth in our section of the pool after the sprayer -- lots of kicking practice for James -- James even put his mouth in the water to blow bubbles a couple of times!!!

Separate story :: Cash got his first phone call on Memorial Day :-) James "answered" the phone in his kitchen and then placed the phone up against my belly saying "Baby!!! Baby!!!?!?" Yeah, pretty much as adorable as it sounds :-) James loves babies right now and says "Hi, Brother" (when he doesn't insist 'No, Sister') as he pushes through my belly button and gives him kisses -- hopefully it continues after Cash actually arrives in our house :-)

Trying Gym Stars

James got to try Gym Stars again this week. It is the most timid I've ever seen him. Our adrenaline junkie must have been too overwhelmed to process it all in the first session. He came screaming down the hall when he saw me, eventually pulling himself a chair over to watch. He just observed for about the first 20 minutes.
Then he got a little brave, piece by piece of the obstacle. He bear crawled under the bridge and then practice donkey kicks (hee-haws) with his friend, P (who he misses so much in his room and can't wait to move up with her).

There was a 2nd session with much less kids in it and more kids his age. He was still apprehensive about getting on the mat, but it didn't take nearly as long. He loved to jump on the spring board and hop like a froggie on the mats and say "Oh NO!" when he fell on purpose. By the end of the session, one of the teachers got him to try swinging...then, of course, we couldn't get him to stop :-) Our silly monkey!

He was also a pro at the handstand station. He even reminded the teachers that the hands needed to go on the floor for the second session :-) James will try the class again next week to see if it goes any better before they fully enroll him -- I think he'll do great once he gets comfortable, then they're in for it! haha!

Month 19

James started his 19th month in Michigan. We went up to Grand Rapids to help celebrate CJ and Jen Starr's wedding. CJ is a very long time friend for me -- since I was 1 year old! It was great to celebrate with the Starr Family!

A. Cass worked hard for that pic! Handsome toddler! Happy Couple! James playing "spoons" as instruments w/ GG

U. Larry &

A. Kiki

A. Cass showing Ainsley how it's done :-)
GG & Pops

Pops and his grandkiddos! Ainsley is a little easier to handle these days :-)

Gross girls with CJ, the groom!

Pops and JamesE

I had to disconnect the phone in our hotel room....so James could play with it in the bathroom (I don't know, but he insisted and it kept him out of trouble)

Other Month 19 happenings (some pics included in slide show below) :: 1st trip to a bookstore; Mommy and Daddy get kisses on the mouth now, with James' mouth (usually) closed; says "home" when we leave school, "geese" when we drive past them; got sick at a store for the 1st time (and Mommy didn't feel too badly she didn't have to clean it up, sorry Hancock Fabrics); visited John & Lynn before their baby is born and saw a bunch of friends; raked up leaves and then jumped in them!!! Imitates Mommy snapping her fingers; makes noises like a fire truck when we pass them on the way home; made trip #2 of the season to the pumpkin farm to get better pics and some more apple cider donuts (yummy); Illinois beat IU for football homecoming (sorry Uncle Brian, but we've got braggin' rights for this year); tooth #12 finally came through -- all the molars are in! got another hair cut (it grows so quickly); were THE CUTEST lion EVER for Halloween (we had to bribe James w/ being able to play outside with "Ab-bee" if he put on the pants and jacket :-) whatever works, right)! James is getting pretty good at talking on the phone, even though most answers are "yeah", "Daddy" and "Hi, Hi, Jo Jo;" also using a lot more sentence-structure in his jibbering; he was soooo excited to go visit the 2's playground and climb around like a monkey like a big kid!

Pumpkin Farm

Dramatic play witch's hat :: $1 :: Thank you, Target, your $1 Spot gets me every time
We went back to Goebbert's Pumpkin Farm to try and get a picture of James in the pumpkins like last year. He wasn't too happy about being in the stroller, he wanted to be a big kid like Abby and Bella, but it was a great way to tire him out for a great afternoon nap!

Picking out a lil' guy

We played peek-a-boo around Linus

James is now obsessed with "Elmo" -- seriously, he's even called me Elmo

Taking a break with Daddy

The great big wooden chair (lasted all of 20 seconds before he decided it was really boring and tried to get off -- he was also mad we made him leave the slide)

Lots of Pumpkins!

A sign of things to come and that fall is right around the corner :: two of the leaves on the maple tree in the backyard have turned fall-red
The slide was a huge hit, he was soooooo mad at us for making him leave it!