Pumpkin Patch

Ava imitating daddy when he said to smile with your mouth.
Looking for the perfect pumpkin.
Trying to lift the perfect pumpkin.
Our little muscle woman has lifted it off the ground, but couldn't walk with it.
Family photo with the horses....plus my not so little belly.

Ava riding a giant rocking horse.

Ava standing by the goats, and not getting too close.

Every year since Ava was 3 months old we have gone to the same pumpkin patch. As Ava gets older she likes it more and more every year. You can buy the pumpkins pre-picked or take a horse drawn wagon ride and pick your own, so that is what we did. Ava found a pumpkin she could lift, but it was too heavy to carry. She also insisted we get a pumpkin for her baby sister. Because this place is a family farm there were also a few animals, goats, dogs, sheep, and a donkey. They also had a bouncy house, but Ava only wanted to go in it if the three boys got out, which they didn't, so we watched them jump for a bit.

Packing Peanuts

So who knew packing peanuts could be all the rage? My friend Katie sent a package (all of my toiletries I left at her house, sorry Katie). When I opened it up Ava exclaimed "Marshmallows". I explained that they were not marshmallow's and that she should not eat them, so she didn't. Instead they were the new entertainment. Her Baby "John" took a swim and a bath, it was a bed and a car for the two of them. Then the best was the art piece she made out of the coffee table. She was very particular about were she placed each peanut. The gift that kept on giving.........

Fall is Here.

So even though it was 80 degrees this weekend (very, very, unusual for Oct), Fall is here. As you drive around all the leaves are changing. We do have brilliant color changes here in Wisconsin. And the trees just started to change last week. Our neighbors tree had dropped a few leaves and Ava insisted on gathering each one and making a little bouquet. Lucky for me she was happy to leave them outside when it was time to go inside.

Little Monkey

Ava new thing has been looking for anything she can hang and swing from. Today we went to the park for a picnic and as she was hanging from the top of the slide she yelled " Momma I a monkey". And then she wanted me to try it. A big pregnant lady should not be hanging from anything, plus I don't think my arms would hold me.

Little House

So we bought a play house. We went to Sam's to buy a veggie tray and ended up walking out with this fabulous playhouse. Here are some great things about it.

1. It was half price! $200 bucks, I don't even think you can buy the cute plastic ones for this price.

2. It was the last one, so it was already assembled.

3. It is cedar.

4. It is big enough to last a few years.

5. It has cute details like a little porch, little shutters, a little planter box, a little bar area where Ava serves her fake food.

6. Ava always wants to play in her new house.......this is good and bad. This last week was warm, but the week before it was cold and rainy. She doesn't mind the cold, but I am not a fan.

I thought it would make a great addition to her play room, especially with winter right around the corner, but it was too big to fit through the doors (6X5X6) with out taking it a part. So for now it is on the patio. I hope it lasts for years to come.

The Flip

Just to clarify, we didn't buy that awful house. Way more work than it was worth. I guess I forgot to say that part. We'll concentrate our efforts and money on our own house for now :)

Bath Tub Friend

Ava found a mini mirror in the bathtub last week. She just kept saying "Hi" in different tones and voices, to the little girl she saw in the mirror.

Dinner at the Diner

My Husband went out of town for a boys weekend in Michigan. The UW badger football team was playing and they drove 7 hours to watch the game. So Ava and I had a girl's weekend. Friday night we went to the Gus's Diner in our neighborhood. They had a great Friday Night Fish Fry special, so I had that and Ava had grilled cheese with fruit. We have eaten there for breakfast once in awhile, but we hadn't tried dinner before. Ava loved the mini juke box. Every time I put quarters in she would just start pushing random buttons even though I wanted her to push the numbers I had already scoped out. I guess Ava wanted to be the DJ and I have to say I didn't know a single song she chose.

Lunch with a friend

Ava and I went to Lunch with my friend Andrea and her new baby. Ava was thrilled to play with all of the baby's things, like his fun mat, his car seat, his swing, his bumbo, etc... She is so gentle and helpful with babies. It will be interesting to see if this carries over with her new little sister.

Friday Night Fish Fry

Ava just before we headed out for dinner snacking on some raisins.
Ava would jump off the boat and into dad's arms. The water was cold, so she would get back to the ladder ASAP and then jump again. What a brave little girl.

So in Wisconsin and probably other places, they do this thing every Friday called "Friday Night Fish Fry". Not eating meat on Friday is one of those Catholic rules, especially during lent (sp?). A lot of bars and even some of the chains have a fish special. You usually get fried fish, bread, salad, and a baked potato or fries. We went up to the cottage for one of the the last nice weather days a couple of Friday's ago. When we got there we took the pontoon boat out for a spin and to swim ( I wasn't planning on swimming but I sorta fell in when I was attempting to jump on the pier....twice! I have no coordination when I am prego) and then went out for fish fry. It was really delicious and nice to spend time at the cottage.

Flipping Out

Matt pretending to take a shower.
Woah what happened in here?
Anyone want to cook in this kitchen?

So we watch those shows about people flipping houses and we own some income property, so when this house went up for sale, we thought maybe it would be a good flip..........oh we were so wrong. It wasn't only disgusting but with all the damage it was a total tear down. It sounded decent on the fact sheet "in a culd-a-sac, decent sq footage, big yard".....la la la. The mold smell was so strong, I couldn't get the smell out of my nose, so I stopped at dairy queen for a mint cookie blizzard on my way home, and it worked!

Bouncy House

It was a super steep fast slide, too fast for the camera!

We went to a bouncy house this week with our friends Deanna and Derek. At first Ava wasn't too sure. I had to slip on a pair of socks and do a few things with her to get her going. There was a point where I was climbing in and out and over walls to get her to this fun slide. It did it once and then said no more. I get a pain while I am pregnant called Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction
If any of you get this you know how painful it can be (1 in 35 women experience this annoying symptom http://www.plus-size-pregnancy.org/pubicpain.htm#Symptoms). Anyway Deanna was a sport and stood on the other side of the wall so I wouldn't have to climb over. I helped the kids over the wall and she helped them climb to the top of the slide. This place was fun. It is called Bounce U and it was $8 for two hours, parents are free, and they serve a snack at the end. We will have to do this again soon.

McDonald's

So I take Ava with me when I do some of my apartment duties. She was really good on Tuesday when I had to sign a lease so I decided to take her to lunch. Where did she want to go? McDonald's of course. We went to the McDonald's in Waunakee because it has a large, clean, playland. We play first and then eat and then play some more. Ava wouldn't climb to the top of the big slide by herself. She would go up part way and then come back down and say "I don't like it". Last time I took her to the top so she could go down the slide. But this time I felt way to pregnant to be climbing through tubes. She still had a great time and got a creepy blue flying monkey in her happy meal.

A NIght Out

Me, Matt, and My Belly.
The guys from Matt's Office. Mike, Chase (the groom), Chris, Matt, CJ, and Brian (kneeling)

One of the guys in Matt's office got married this last weekend, so we had a date night. I should say Date Day because we left Ava with Matt's parents at 1pm on Saturday and picked her the next morning. How lucky we are to have such great parents that live close by. It was a beautiful wedding and reception. The food was superb and the music was the perfect mix of slow/fast, new/old, etc...It's funny because I absolutely loved my own wedding, but found myself thinking about the things I would have added or changed about it. Will I do this until my own daughter gets married? Is that why some Mom's get so involved with their daughters weddings? Ava could be in trouble........ Also the bride and groom are about 7 yrs younger than Matt and I and WOW did we feel old. The wedding party looked soooo young. We danced until our feet hurt and Matt came home and watched the rest of the Wisconsin Badger that was on late because it was in Cali. Ava was excited to see us in the morning and told us all about her chocolate donut with sprinkles she had for breakfast.

Whohoo We have a Delivery Date!

So some of you know but we had a C-section with our first baby Ava because she was breech. With Ava, when we found out that a C-section was the new plan, I was a little taken back. I kept hoping she might flip around but she didn't. Right before I had Ava I had come to to terms that it wasn't going to go as I had planned-a vaginal delivery. Once I had accepted the new plan, I was actually terrified that she would flip around the day I was going to the hospital and that I wouldn't leave with a baby, but another changed plan and have to keep waiting. The C-section went very smooth as did the recovery. Ava was 9 lbs and 10 oz and 12 days early...........ummmmm that seemed like a big baby. So this time around there has been no hesitation on my end on which way I would decide. (and also so far I have Placenta Previa which also makes you have a C-section---meant to be, right?) And it is funny this time I am terrified that I might actually go into labor. So I know that most of you have had successfully had vaginal deliveries and some of you have even had successful V-bac's (what they call a vaginal delivery if you have already had a c-section), but for me a c-section is what I know and what I am comfortable with, plus I basically got to big baby "p's" birthday. Our Delivery Date is Friday December 5th......that is unless I go into labor earlier. And for anyone who missed my post on July 29th, we are having another girl.

The zoo and I'm caught up on blogging!

We went to the zoo this weekend. We couldn't have asked for better weather..........and hopefully it won't be the last nice weekend. Here in Wisconsin you never know. We rode the train and Matt took her on the carousal. The polar bears were very active this visit and Ava couldn't get enough of the monkeys.

Sunday Donuts

Matt has picked up donuts the last few Sundays almost making it a tradition (Yeah, I love donuts!) This Sunday Ava woke up early and Matt took her with him to get donuts. She came racing in my room when they got home saying "Mom wake up, donuts with sprinkles and coffee for daddy, and you sleep good?" all in a one sentence blur. And now everyday she has mentioned wanting to go get donuts.

Corn Anyone?

Ava wanted to help me husk the corn this weekend. She kept asking "where's the popcorn?" Keep peeling............ And she finally got to it. She was so excited and I was able to capture the moment. She was even excited every time I "found" the corn.

Labor Day with the Nelson's

The Dads and kids hiking at Devil's Lake

Kate and Ella in a Bear cave, okay not really
Grant, Paul, and Dallin on Paul's back
The four of us............of course one is in my belly

Picking up rocks

Ella with a millapead that Matt found. The kids loved it and wanted to take it home. I frankly found it a little creepy......oh those little legs, ewe.

Ava in mid jump.

Kate and Dallin at the pool

Ella riding the snake. I should have gotten pictures of the kids coming off the big water slides. By far a big highlight for them as they were the first big water slides they had been on ever. Ella even braved one by herself.

All of the kids at the cottage. We put strong Grant at the bottom to keep all the kids on.

Grants legs gave way after we had all the shots we needed............and they all came tumbling down.

We were lucky enough to have my sister and her family in town for the Labor Day Weekend. We packed it full of fun. We started with a nice hike at Devil's Lake. We came home got our swim suits on and went swimming. We had banana splits after the kids went to bed. then we went to church on Sunday and after church went to the cottage to hang out with Matt's family. The kid's all played well together. We got home in time for a late dinner and the Nelson's left Monday and stopped at Lego Land in Chicago.

Louiville Kentucky in August

Emma and Ava's matching jam jams and her new glow worm.
Lacey, me, and our kids. I'm only 4 weeks over due on getting my hair colored.........I should refrain from being in pictures when it is in this state. Yikes (photo courtesy of Lacey) Yummy ice cream cones. Ava has borrowed one of Emma's many princess dress ups. She didn't want to take off the dress and Lacey assured me that it would clean up like a charm, and it did!
A fun car at the bouncy house. They had straps to wear on your shoulders so you could pretend you were a car on a race track. I just missed her wearing the car and she refused to put it back on.
Here is Ava on the airplane going back home. I brought her carseat on board and traveling was like a dream. With out it she wants up and down and opens and closes her seat belt and basically can't sit still. In her seat she just knows she has to stay in it just like the car. Well worth schlepping it through the airport.

So we then drove from Cincinnati to Louisville to see my cousin Lacey and her adorable family. I hadn't seen her in almost 10 years. She is an avid blogger, so I felt like I already knew her kids. Anyone who has stayed at Lacey's will say it is like staying at a hotel........ummmm I have to say even better. She had a gift basket for Ava and one for me too. WOW. Ava's included a cute glow worm, princess jammies, a princess sippy, lots of treats, and a cute purse. I don't even think I got this nice of a basket when I was in the buying world being wined and dined. Mine had some amazing chocolate treats and tantalizing lotions and some other stuff I can't think of at the moment. We of course stayed up way to late every night and did a lot of fun stuff. The best is when I lost my keys and I almost parked Lacey in. The neighbor guy was laughing watching us trying to get Lacey's van around my rental car. He lent us a hand and got us out of our predicament. WHEW. Where were the keys you ask........under the bed. Apparently Ava was playing them the night before and even set off the alarm. She did this when she was supposed to be sleeping. I really wished that Lacey was my neighbor or just lived in the same town. I would want to hang out with her and her kids everyday. So maybe next time we won't wait 10 years until we see each other. Oh yeah and she has a really cute new baby too. Only 9 weeks old. It really got me excited for my new one in December.