March 2013

             March has come to an end and we are still a family of 3!  We are down to the final 2 weeks left and weare excited and nervous at the same time. Everything went pretty well with Allison’s delivery and we can only hope to have the same experience.  People have started to ask if we are “ready” and the only way I have to respond to that is the same way I responded to that question when we were getting close to having Allison.  Maybe.  I mean, you can sit here and make sure you have a nursery ready and plenty of diapers and clothes.  You can cook meals left and right and get as much ready as you can.  However, I’m sure during the first few months we will have some lows and highs that no one can be “ready” for, so we will just wait for the arrival and take it one day at a time.  I say that now…let’s see how the April blog sounds when we have a 2-3 week-old newborn. 

At the beginning of March, Pete threw Laura a big 30^th Birthday party in Ohio.  I left on Saturday morning and I was back by Sunday a little after lunch. Beth rented a limo for Laura to be surprised after she went shopping with mom.  She was greeted with a limo full of family and friends and we drove around for an hour or 2 before we went to dinner!  I was glad I was able to make it, as I was able to celebrate Beth and Laura’s 21^st and 30^th birthdays over the years. 

During the month, several of Deb’s friends continued a tradition of taking the mom who is having her 2^nd or 3^rd child to lunch and pedicures.  It was a surprise and she really enjoyed it.  She was tired since she worked that morning, but I think she enjoyed being out with the girls and having some laughs.  I went out with the guys that evening to Broad Ripple and then we played some poker.

            We observed my Dad’s 2 year anniversary of his passing carrying on the trend fromlast year, where we enjoyed Dad’s favorite foods.  This year, we went to a Chinese Buffett!  Beth, Matt, Mom, Pat and Paul were with us and we enjoyed the many foods offered! Allison’s favorite was bananas dipped in strawberry sauce.  It was a messy meal for her!  Deb and I took Allison home and put her to bed and then I went back out to Beth and Matt’s condo to share some stories.  There is plenty to distract me from this anniversary right now, but I had a hard time with the good and bad memories on that day.  Deb and I took Allison to his grave and she said the word “grandpa” and that was especially difficult, but I was glad to hear it. 

 Easter was the past weekend and we celebrated with family in Indianapolis.  The Vandervaarts, Wahmans (minus Chelsea),the Dodson’s, Mark and Mom were around on Friday to celebrate Claire’s and Chris’ birthdays.  It was fun to see Allison interacting with her cousins and playing “ring around the rosey.”  We were over there again on Saturday evening and Sunday morning.  We searched for eggs from the Easter bunny and Allison really enjoyed it! 

 

We took Allison out to breakfast at Cafe Patachou where she really enjoyed the cinnamon toast.  Later that day she rode a tricycle for the first time!!

A few more items from this month:

·        I went to a Timmy Global Health Fundraiser at the Conrad. Beth hosted a table and filled it with her friends and family.  It was quite a night and a good time. 

·        I went over to play cards at Wahmans on a random Friday night. Chelsea and Chris were home from school from spring break and it was good to see them. 

·        We had 3 more swim lessons in March.  We are going to switch to 1 per month starting in May with our instructor.  Our hope is that on those days, she comes back over to our house and babysit and then Deb and I can have a pre-scheduled date night.

·        The Depps came for short day-visit in late March.  It was great to see their daughter and catch up with them.

·        Deb and I went to the daycare for an Easter egg decorating party.

 

·        Deb beat me AGAINin our NCAA bracket challenge.  The sad thing is, the tournament isn’t even over and our brackets are done! 

 

 

February 2013

             February has come and gone and we are starting to realize that our world is about to beturned upside down.  We realize that manypeople in this world and before us have had more than one child, but thereality that we will be a group of 4 is exciting and scary all at once!

Randyand Anna came to visit toward the end of February and we were able to get a lotdone.  Anna and Deb went through all ofour baby stuff and cleaned all of the toys, wiped down all of the differentthings we barely believe Allison ever fit in and did several loads oflaundry.  We moved some furniture and gotthe nursery nearly done.  We have a fewsmall things to do, but for the most part, we are in good shape.  I spent my free time over the weekend puttingup some blinds and doing some other small projects.  Randy fixed some damaged hardwood in ourkitchen.  We really appreciated themcoming as it helped us get ready for the addition without having to do it allourselves and watch Allison. 

              Allisonis doing really well.  We transitionedher bed into a “toddler bed.”  Now, asfirst time parents, we have put a twin bed rail on the outside of it.  The funny part about that is that is takes upthe entire crib…so we don’t really know if she could get out if she wanted to!  She has done well with it and even herweekend naps have started to be a little better (knock on wood!).  She is babbling all over the place and we canmake out some of her words.  We can’ttell if she is talking to us or just telling herself a story sometimes.  She loves singing, especially in thecar.  Her favorites are the ABC’s,Twinkle Twinkle and Mary had a little lamb. We have started to discipline her a little, with time-outs and make sureshe says she is “sorry” for hitting or throwing food.  It isn’t much, but we are assuming it be anecessity over the next few months.
 
             Debis feeling normal for someone who is 34 weeks pregnant.  Not that I would know, but she is holdingtogether pretty well, but sleep is becoming erratic and her energy isdecreasing.  She is having some legpain/numbness, but she doesn’t complain much and is still able to keep up withAllison most of the time. 

 WhenDeb was at this same point in her pregnancy with Allison, my dad passedaway.  Some of those feelings andthoughts creep in as you revert back to “what did I do last time this happened”when comparing the pregnancies.  I feellike I’m in a much better place and am hoping I can be more excited this time,as I struggled with that last time. 

A few more items from thismonth:

·        We started privateswim lessons for Allison.  One ofAllison’s babysitters, Stacy, also teaches swim lessons for infants.  We contacted her and she meets us at my mom’spool for lessons.  We have had 1 and shedid well.  Mom and I took her anothertime and she did well for us.

·        For Valentineday, we did our usual heart shaped pizza from Papa Murphy’s.  I went to Allison’s daycare to decorate acookie and she really enjoyed the icing. 

·        I went withJeremy and Ben to a Purdue game vs. Michigan State.  We enjoyed getting there early and havingsome signature drinks at Harrys, a Baltimore Zoo and a Long Island!

·        We watched theAbby and Ella Watkins while Ben and Julia looked for a house this month.  We had a good time and I was glad to see thatmy humor translates well to 6 year-olds. That must mean that Allison will like me for at least 4 more years. 

·        Nothing toodramatic this year for Lent.  I havegiven up the radio in the car and I’ve decided to limit my caffeine while Debhas given up talking on her cell phone while in the car. 

·        I attended adinner for my aunt and uncle’s anniversary thrown by their daughter.  This was on my Dad’s side, so it was good tosee some relatives I don’t see all that often.