Art Smart

With Cameron in school, I thought it would be fun to do something with just Hannah before the baby comes. So, I enrolled her in an art class thru the city of Tempe. In class, they read a story and do an art project based on the theme of the book. Today, the made a dog hand puppet. Hannah is so diligent in her coloring though, we never made it to putting the puppet together.

this is her "cheese" smile

She does quite well staying between the lines. And if her right arm gets tired, she switches to her left.

Happy Anniversary!

Chuck and I "celebrated" our 7th year anniversary yesterday (the 3rd). In some ways, I can't believe we have been married 7 years, have two kids together and a baby on the way. In other ways, it seems like I can barely even remeber life without Chuck. I adore Chuck! He is such a great husband and father. AND he knows he is pretty lucky to have me. Of course, he can't forget because I am always reminding him! For our anniversary, we actually got away from the kids and out of the heat for a day/night. We left Saturday morning and drove to Snowflake, AZ. Charity came over to watch the kids. She said they were really good. So good in fact, she thought maybe they were getting sick. She took them to the AZ Science Center, the dollar store and Peter Piper Pizza. They gave her no problems going to bed and stayed in their beds all night. In Snowflake, we attending the temple there, where we were sealed just over 6 years ago, ate at a great Italian restaurant, and relaxed at a cute little Bed & Breakfast. We enjoyed a walk Sunday morning in the cool weather, had a great breakfast and then drove home. We would have loved to stay longer, but asking Charity to stay with the kids longer would have been pushing our luck! For our actual anniversary yesterday, Chuck took a long lunch and we all went to our favorite restaurant, Spinato's, pizza and Pibb Xtra with crushed ice! I didn't get a picture of us, but here is one of the kids...

Baby update

We had the ultrasound last Fri. Most people can't wait for their ultrasound because they want to find out the gender. We didn't want to know the gender but just wanted to be reassured that the baby is healthy. Although, I think it does cross most soon-to-be parents minds that something could be wrong, you don't really expect something might be wrong. So it was with us. At the end of the ultrasound, the tech said she was going to start her initial report and call the Dr. to see if he wanted her to take any more pictures. Okay, we are sure that's not normal, so we start to worry. She came back and said that there are two "soft" markers for a chromosomal abnormality (most often meaning Downs). There is a spot on the heart, common in a lot of normal babies. And the fluid on the kidneys is a little above normal. Again, not something to worry about, but the two together raises concern. I did not have the triple screen and at this point it's too late anyway. So, we wait for the Dr. to come take a look. And he sees the same two markers as well as maybe, possibly a "hole in the heart". The ventricular septum normally gets very thin as it approaches the valves. So, sometimes it is hard to see if it is really there are not. And he wasn't sure if it was there or not. If a baby has one marker, they usually don't say anything to the parents. But two, they do. But I don't know if they would have said anything about the ventricular septum if the other two markers weren't there and I also don't know if that will be considered a third marker, thus increasing the odds, if after the next ultrasound they determine there is a hole. So, we go in for another ultrasound next week. The fluid on the kidneys might change, they might be able to see more of the ventricular septum, but he says the spot on the heart will always be there. Other than keeping an eye on things via ultrasound, the only other thing we can do is an amnio, which runs the risk of miscarriage, 1/100. Which might not seem like bad odds, but when you are talking about losing a baby already this far along, it's a risk we aren't willing to take. We know there is no point to worrying. It might be nothing. It could be something. If it is, what does worry about it do? But we're still worried. Much of the research says that soft markers don't really mean much and just cause undue worry for the parents. The research also says that some of these markers can be seen better on thin women. Chuck considers me thin, I don't. And many of these markers seen during 2nd trimester ultrasounds correct themselves. It is statistically improbable that we would have a baby with Down Syndrome, but there is always the possibility for anyone. There are so many thought and emotions running thru my head, I don't even know where to begin. So, for now, I won't.

Here I am at 20 weeks. I am starting to tell my butt and legs are getting fatter and I really don't like that! My exercise volume has not changed and I don't think I am eating any more than normal, even though I should be able to eat more right? Oh, and don't worry, the comments about how big I am just keep coming.

H update

I just can't get over how beautiful Hannah is! I adore this little girl. She is talking up a storm, most of which only a mom can understand. She has come to love pizza, only she says it like

pee-a. We are not really getting anywhere with the potty training, but it's okay, I'm not going to rush it. She is going to be a strong willed little girl.

Here are some cute pictures of her.

After fighting quite a bit over this big, red ball, C gave it up for something else he wanted to keep away from H. So, H insisted on taking it to bed with her. I did try to sneak it out of her bed once she fell asleep, but she caught me.

Her downdog.

She was so cute sitting on the edge of the couch here, I couldn't resist a picture.

C update

Cameron started school on Wed. the 12th. He is attending the same school he did last year with most of the same students, but this year he goes M,W and F. On the first day of school, he brought home a sheet saying his favorite food is hot dogs, favorite color is red and his favorite thing to do is go to the park.

I had been trying a "good deeds" chart with him. He would get a star each time he did something like got himself dressed, helped pick up, stayed in his bed all night, etc. He would earn prizes along the way. But this didn't really seem to be motivating him. So, since he wants to buy toys every time we go somewhere, I decided to try motivating him with money. This way I could also try to teach him the value of a dollar. So, for every 5 stars he earns, he gets a dollar. The first week he earned $3. We had a chance to go to Target in the middle of the next week and by then he had earned $5. He chose 5 dinosaurs from the $1 bin. He found a couple other dollar items he liked, but I told him he would have to put 2 dinosaurs back if he wanted the other things. And he said, no that's okay. I gave him his money to pay and we were out the door. It was actually a quite pleasant experience. He gets a star when he stays in bed all night and we did go 5 nights in a row without him getting up, the 6th night, he got up just before 5 and I put him back in bed, but I'll take that. And last night, he stayed in bed all night. So, we are making progress!? But I'm not sure the stars are the motivating factor there.

Just a cute picture of the kids. We have been playing "horses" a lot lately. H created her horse all on here own. I feel like I should go buy her a real stick horse, but then I also think, hey if she's happy with that one, why pay the money for a real one.

Tales from the Trail and Beyond

When I posted our last post (see below), I hadn't had much time to talk to Chuck or my brother to get the stories from the backpacking trip. So, finally...here are a few of the funnier moments.

As Lily and Emma were likely already at camp, Darien and Jonathan were behind with Chuck and C even further behind. Even though it was only a 3 mile day, there was an elevation increase of about 3,000 feet. And to that, this is what Darien had to say, "I hate this stupid trail. Whose idea was this? (My brother responded with a "Chuck's"). I'm never going on a trip Chuck plans again."

One day, Cameron tells Chuck, "Dad, when we get home, we are setting up the black card table, putting all our camping stuff on it and we are having a yard sell." We have never had or even been to a yard sale!

The trip began on Sat. and by Thurs. C had not pooped. After many false alarms, Chuck was inspired to have C walk naked from the waist down. Which apparently did the trick. I'm sure there are some pictures of that out there somewhere.

C didn't come home any different then he left. His first words to me, were "Mom, will you play with me." And when I said I'd like to help unload the car first, he said I was stupid and he hated me.

We were getting out of the car the other morning and C says, "It's too hot here. I hate Arizona. I want to move to Colorado." I wonder who he heard that from?

Now, you might think they didn't have fun. But every camping trip I've been on, this is how everyone talks excluding Chuck. I'm sure everyone will be back next year.

Summer Backpacking Trip '09

For many, many years, Chuck has gone backpacking for a week each summer with a group of friends (many have come and gone). This year, he decided to make the trip gentle enough that Cameron and any other kids that wanted to go, could handle it. Unfortunately, the only people that went, out of many that were invited, were my brother, Jonathan, his son, Darien (age 5) and Lily and Emma. But despite the small turnout, they had a great time. Chuck said the boys did great. C hiked all but about a mile and Darien just about the whole thing. And they were only "sore" with each other about 45 minutes the whole trip. (Now, I found that hard to believe. Normally these boys just beat each other up!) The trip started Sunday morning in Vallecito, CO and ended Saturday in Needleton where they caught the train to Durango. It was 6 nights, 7 days and about 25 miles. BSofA look out! They experienced rain, hail, and snow along the way. They also saw goats, marmots, and a moose. C told me that Darien saw a bear, but I don't think that is true. Hannah and I missed them and we are glad that are back safe and sound. Maybe next year, H will go to! Here are just a few of the many pictures.