Lots of pictures

Madelyn's favorite thing to eat is yogurt. Here she is enjoying some.

These next couple pictures are from my grandfather's viewing. I got some cute shots of Madi, Chloe, and my grandmother.

Right before the viewing, after checking into our hotel, Gregg and Madi had a chance to go swimming. Madi was just about to go under in this picture. :)

Here I am today, at 34 weeks! We are getting so close now. I can't wait to meet our little guy. I am feeling great, especially now that I am done working. We have a lot to do yet to get ready, and I needed to stop working so we can take advantage of the weekends, and so that I can take advantage of getting as much sleep as possible before Ben's arrival.

Here is our completed den. I am soooo happy to have redone it before Ben's arrival. It feels so good out there, and Gregg and I have been using the room a lot more even in the last week. I think I will be scrapping more now that it's all out in the open, and I don't have to retreat to the back of the house to do it.

All the paneling you see is new, as well as the crown moulding, and the sliding glass door. Everything is so fresh and new!

It looks pretty crowded, but all this stuff was basically in Ben's room.

Here is Ben's room! We just finished painting and putting the trim and closet doors back up. We have maybe an hour of work yet to do, which I am hoping to do during Madi's naptime today.

Finally, last night we took Madi to the park. She loved it! It was a little cool outside, but that didn't stop her from having a blast! Every time we drive by the park, she squeals.

Playing Catch Up!

Just thought I would post a quick and short update. I am now 33 weeks, and find it hard to believe that this little guy could be here in 4 weeks. If he comes as early as Madelyn came, he will be here on April 20th! That's only 4 weeks and a couple days.

We have been making huge progress in the den. I will post pictures tonight, I hope. Tomorrow, Gregg is taking off and we are going to town on Ben's room. We have to take apart the home gym and put it back up in the den. That is our goal for tonight. We hope to have the room painted by Friday! I have to work this weekend, and then I have off the following weekend. I am only working 2 more weekends after that, and then I am going on maternity leave. I can't believe he is coming so soon!

I found out today that my good friend, Abbey, who used to live nearby, but now lives in North Carolina, just had her baby. I don't know if she was born last night or today, but I know her name is Cameron Elaine! CONGRATS, Jake and Abbey!!!! Can't wait to see her and hear the birth story! :)

That's it for now. I am going to do some better catching up on here tonight.

30+ weeks!

Madelyn has a new obsession with these boots. She wants to wear them all the time.

Here I am at almost 31 weeks! :)

Tomorrow Gregg, me and Madi are on our way to Western PA for my grandfather's funeral. Please keep our family in your prayers.

The angels came for Grandpa today

This is a picture of me, Madelyn, and my grandpa last year. Today at 1:35 p.m., the angels came and carried him to Jesus. I know this isn't a very good picture, and I am going to try to gather up some pictures of him from years ago to post. I am glad that I have pictures of him and Madelyn so one day I can show her who he was.



Ever since I can remember, my grandfather struggled with Parkinson's disease. When I was a little girl, my brother and I would make fun of him and how his fingers shook. I didn't know then that he had a disease and that he couldn't help it.



My grandfather was always very loving, but very protective of us. Even when we were teenagers, he would not let us ride our bikes in the street. We always had to be on the sidewalk. We were not allowed to get into his junk drawer for fear we would hurt ourselves on his scissors. If we did manage to get his permission to look in the junk drawer, he would watch over our shoulders like a hawk. And the pencil sharpener mounted inside the basement steps-- we were not allowed anywhere near it!



I have a million fond memories of my grandfather that I could go on forever telling. I am so very sad that he left this world, but I know that he is in the presence of God, and I couldn't be any happier about that! He had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and I know he has eternal life in Heaven with Him.



There is a song sung by David Phelps that seems like it was written for my grandfather.



Fly Again

Words & music by David Phelps



His trembling hands held the church pew that day,

stuggling to stand when they asked him to pray.

With wisdom and strength his words were spoken.

but his body grew weary for his wings were broken.



But he will fly once again.

He will soar with his wings unfolded.

Hear the angels applaud as he rides

on the wind to the arms of God.

And he will fly. He will fly again.



And on that day when he left for the sky

I saw him smile as he told me goodbye.

No more would he weep for missed tomorrows.

No more would he suffer in this land of sorrows.



But he will fly once again.

He will soar with his wings unfolded.

Hear the angels applaud as he rides

on the wind to the arms of God.

And he will fly. He will fly again.



I know that he’s in a better place.

I still dream of the day when I’ll see his face.

Then we’ll embrace, and...We will fly once again.

We will soar with our wings unfolded.

Hear the angels applaud as we ride

on the wind to the arms of God,

and we will fly. We will fly again.



Julius Eugene Arnold

September 25, 1927- March 3, 2008

Pregnancy, Party, and Snow!

Today marks 29 weeks of pregnancy for me! Can you believe it? I can't!!! This little guy will probably be here in about 9 weeks! WOW! Do I have to even say that I cannot wait!? I think I am ready for the sleepless nights, breastfeeding woes, and the joys of bringing home a new baby. Well, actually we are nowhere near ready. We haven't made much of any progress to Ben's room yet. We still have to install the sliding glass door in the den, and get moving on moving all the junk out of his room into the den. We don't have much time! I just want to get it done! As far as how I have been feeling....Ben is kicking up a storm in there, often hurting me with his strong kicks. I can't believe how much more active he is that Madelyn was. I am enjoying it though, for the most part. I have been having quite a bit of heartburn, but nothing that a few Tums can't help. I go back to the Dr. the first week of March, and then I start going every two weeks! I know the time from here on out is going to fly.

I think Madi has a little bit more of an understanding of Ben and his soon to be arrival. Without me mentioning anything she says "Bum" and lifts up my shirt. She sees clothes for him and she says "Bum". So she definitely knows something is up with "Bum".

I mentioned a while back that Gregg had sprained his ankle while jogging. He still is not 100% with it yet. He can jog on it a little, but he still complains that it hurts at times. It's been 9 weeks since he did it, and we both thought it would be better by now, but it's not!

So far Madelyn has taken 3 naps in her big girl bed. Most days when I put her in it for a nap, she wants to play in it, and doesn't settle down for a nap, and she ends up taking a nap in her crib. Today I am lucky that she is sleeping in it though! We have not tried any nighttime sleeping in it yet. I want to have a good monthsworth of naps in it before we try nighttime. It looks as though we will be borrowing a crib for a few months for Ben until Madi is out of her crib. I don't want to rush anything. As far as potty training is going-- she went on the potty I think about 5 times and then totally lost interest. So I put it away. I just got it out a couple days ago again, and she seems to have a little bit of interest, but has not done anything on it yet. I think we will hold off for a while, unless she really seems ready. I think trying in the fall would be best, because by that time, we will all be accustomed to having a new baby in the house, and she might be ready by then. So we'll see!

On February 11, my dad turned 60, so on the 9th, my mom and siblings threw him a surprise birthday party. The whole weekend turned out great! He was very surprised all the way up until he walked in the door! My entire family was together for the party, and it was great to see all my siblings and their spouses together. Here are the girls before the party started. It was difficult to keep them entertained while we tried to get ready. They have so much fun when they are together!

Ouch! They bonked heads!

Awwww!

SURPRISE!!!

Back row: My brother, Evan, and his wife Sarah, Gregg and I, my sister, Amy, Chloe, and Amy's husband, Darryl, and my brother, Nathan.

Bottom row: My cousin's daughter, Ashlynn, and her twin brother, Caleb is on my dad's lap. Then Madelyn, my dad, Nathan's wife, Mary, and my mom.

The rest of these pictures are just random pics. I just love Madelyn's hair, and after every bath, I blow dry it and brush it. She isn't afraid of the hairdryer, but I have to distract and entertain her with toys and books to get her to sit still.

Here she is before her bath the other day. She loves the scale!

All of these pictures are from today. We got about 5 inches of snow last night and today, and we went out and played for about 50 minutes. She LOVES the snow, and I love taking her out in it!

We made snow angels. Can you see them?

Mmmmm!

Blog addiction

I recently found a blog about a family that lives in North Carolina. Just to give you a rundown--
The blog is written by a dad and husband, Nathan. His wife, Tricia, is about a month older than me and has Cystic Fibrosis. She was in the process of planning for a double lung transplant, when they found out they were pregnant. Their baby, Gywneth, was born January 8, at a little over 24 weeks gestation. I have been checking up on them at least a half a dozen times a day, and I guess you could say I am addicted to their blog! Nate and Tricia are both born again Christians, and their story has made a huge impact on my life. There are pictures of the three of them on Nate's blog : www.cfhusband.blogspot.com. Check it out, and remember to pray for them. They are an amazing family with an amazing testimony!

Slumbering Sweetly...

...in her big girl bed! Right now Madi is asleep in her big girl bed for the very first time. I put her down in it yesterday for naptime, but she only wanted to play. I think my mistake yesterday was not giving her a few minutes to explore the bed rail before putting her in the bed to sleep. Right before I put her down for her nap today, I explained that she was going to take a nap in her big girl bed, and that if she got up I would put her in her crib for her nap. I checked on her every 2-3 minutes at first just to make sure she was behaving. And the last time I checked on her, she was sound asleep. She is just so precious. I am hoping this nap lasts as long as her naps usually do-- around 2 to 2 1/2 hours. I almost wanted to cry when I was taking these pictures. What a little miracle she is, and how much she has blessed our lives. Thank you, God, so much for this gift you gave to us. We couldn't love her more!