It's a BOY!!!!

The anticipation is finally over! We are happy to announce that we will be having a boy this February. As most of you know, we already have a name picked out. His name will be Thomas after my father, but we'll call him Tommy for short (that is until he gets older). Tommy is growing perfectly. We feel so blessed to have another baby, have it be a boy like we wanted, and everything so far is healthy and growing on schedule. Andrew and Madison were so excited to see their little unborn baby brother moving, kicking and opening his mouth while in my belly. Lee and I were happy that he cooperated so we could know the sex. When I was pregnant with Andrew, he didn't cooperate and I was stuck with yellow and green baby stuff. Tommy was not shy at all about showing the goods and at first wouldn't cooperate about showing the technician the important stuff, instead he kept twisting and turning to show us all he was a boy! I'm hoping to find a way to upload some of the ultrasound pictures so everyone can see my little "bun in the oven"!

Toothless

Madison lost another tooth on top! Now, she is missing 5 teeth on top and two on bottom. Her two front teeth are finally starting to show signs of coming through. The other night I made some hot wings and BBQ wings. Andrew starts cracking up laughing and I look over to see what all the commotion is and then I see Madison's face! Then she says to me, "well, I can't eat them with my front teeth so I have to pull the chicken off with my side teeth!". Naturally, I HAD to take a picture of her. She made sure to smile big. What a goof!

Blitz Blowout!!

For the last three weeks, Andrew's team has completely shut out the other teams. Week one: the score was 45-0, week two: the score was 52-0, and today's score was 63-0! Next week is the big challenge. We are up against the other undefeated team, the Northglenn Giants. This is the team whose coach tried to recruit Andrew (see older post). The coaches have already warned the boys that they were going to have a rough practice this week.Picture above was against the Brighton Bulldogs. Picture below was against Northglenn Cowboys.The coach told him since he did such a good job opening up holes for us to score that he let Andrew score the extra point in last Saturday's game. Of course we were excited because Andrew is strictly a lineman so the chances of him having the opportunity to score is very minimal. We are very proud of him and his team. Way to go Broomfield Blitz!!

Baby update

I went to the doctor yesterday and everything is going really well. I am gaining just the right amount of weight so hopefull I will stay on that track and not go overboard like my other pregnancies. As always, I am instantly wide but my hubby never seems to mind. He loves me any size (though I prefer to be thin). The baby's heartbeat is 140 bpm and seems to be growing perfectly. My ultra sound is scheduled for September 29th and I CANNOT wait! If baby cooperates I'll get to know if it's going to be my little Tommy or my precious Chloe...or Isabella. We are still undecided on the girl name. Aside from my hubby and the kids, everyone is super excited for the baby to come. My in-laws and best friend, Jolene, are already buying stuff for the little one as well and are eagerly awaiting the gender so they can buy pink or blue.
Here are a few 16 wk baby buddha pictures I took while visiting my bestest friend (and newly appointed mom) Jolene. Vanessa's face was cut off in the picture below but at least her eyebrows are looking good!

Hopefully I can get the ultra sound pictures uploaded when they become available so my friends and family can see the bun in the oven!

What a difference a year makes!

Every year, instead of buying their school pictures, I take them to have their pictures taken. I can't believe how different they look in just a year! I guess I don't notice how much they change since I see them day after day. Sure I am constantly looking at pictures of them because I scrapbook often, but I'm still scrapbooking pictures of them when they were much younger. But, when I got these I compared them to the ones they took last year I couldn't believe my eyes! Madison lost her front teeth at the end of May and they still haven't grown in! She is looking more like a beautiful young lady instead of my big headed, blue-eyed pumpkin she used to be. She is my little shadow. If I am at the table scrapbooking, she is right there with me. She randomly "spring" cleans and organizes everything just like me. She is so affectionate, friendly, sympathetic and motherly. I wish she would stay my little girl forever. And Andrew, I am so proud of him. He is so smart, responsible, and full of integrity. He is my little adult. It's hard to see him grow so fast. I feel like I didn't get to enjoy him enough as my little boo boo. He's off to middle school next year and I hope that he continues to excel in Math, Reading and football.

They both have those cheeks you just have to pinch!

The first day of school

Well, it's that time of year again when you are running around shopping for school clothes, new shoes and school supplies. Aside from breaking the bank, it breaks my heart a little every year to see my kids grow up so fast. Andrew started the Fifth grade! Middle school is just around the corner, geesh! And, Madison started Second grade. I can still remember crying on their first day of Kindergarten! Although most parents get a little bonkers by the end of summer, when the first day rolls around you can't help but miss them.
We are looking forward to Andrew's first football game with Broomfield Blitz on Saturday. Hopefully we'll have our computer up and running again soon so I can post decent pictures up instead of the fuzzy ones from my phone :(

Trying to keep y'all up to date!

So, I finally get my lovely camera that I had been eyeing for months and not even a week later our computer goes out. (I blame Xcel and the surprise power outtage at 10pm!) Lee has a laptop that he uses for work that he has been nice enough to bring home every night so I can still keep contact with the "outside" world, but I can't hook my camera up to it :( So, I have resorted to taking pictures with my phone and sending them to my email for now.

I hope to keep my friends and family more up-to-date. Andrew will be starting football next week with the Broomfield Blitz so I am SUPER excited about that. They will also be going back to school in just a few weeks which is always bittersweet. I love them being off and being able to stay at home with them and enjoy them while they let me, but as most parents know, they tend to drive you a little nuts at times. Also, it means I go back to my normal Mon-Fri work schedule of the oh-so-tiring 10:30-4:00 pm. I know, I have it easy...but woman have to complain about something, right? So, it will have to be about work for now. I'm sure soon enough I will be complaining about tiny feet in my ribs or a sore lower back! :)

Surprise!

Lee and I are having another baby! At first, the thought of having to start over scared me, but now, I am extremely excited! We started our family early and thought we'd finish early, but God had other plans for us. We are eagerly anticipating the arrival of our new baby in February. The 20th to be exact. As I'm sure any parent knows, your kids grow too fast and every step of the way is an exciting new adventure. So for now, I am enjoying my "big" kids and looking forward to some new adventures that a little one brings!

In preparation of the new baby, we traded in our beloved Xterra (that we bought brand new on 10/99) for a Chevy Tahoe. Yep, it looks a lot like our Xterra but SUPERSIZED! As much as my friends joked that I would end up in a van, I refused. Don't get me wrong, it was tempting. They have lots of room for the kids and extra cousins and friends that usually accompany us, BUT, I just didn't have it in me to sign off on it. We love the new ride and hope it brings us as much reliability and good times that our Xterra gave us.

A day with my son.

So, while Madison is in Gunnison with my good friend Shannon and her family, I decide to take Andrew on a little trip. I used to go up to Boulder quite a bit in my younger years and thought I would share that with Andrew. We started by having a bite to eat at Old Chicago on the Pearl Street Mall. We sat outside to people watch and played a little 'Truth or Dare' while we waited for our food. Yes, I took a few dares and made a tard out of myself; but, to hear him giggle like that was worth a bit of self-humiliation. After lunch, we walked the mall. Andrew got a kick out of the people singing and playing their guitars. There was even a guy walking around with a cello trying to find a spot to perform! We browsed through a few shops and bought a few souvenirs. After the mall, I decided to take him up to my favorite spot. It's off of Canyon Rd. in the mountains. I used to climb this mountain all of the time. I loved it! However, when we get to the spot where I would climb, it's fenced off! Only bike trails are accessible! I figure it's only a log fence so we will be a little reckless and crawl through it and make our way up. Andrew was so funny! Anyone who knows us, have heard my stories about how anal Andrew is and how afraid he is of doing something wrong. He always thinks of the worst-case-scenario and is instantly nervous. He's a nervous wreck worrying about getting attacked by mountain lions or falling on a cactus, which are maybe the size of his hand! We make it to the top and sit and enjoy the view. It's truly breath taking!

On the way down, Andrew's paranoia kicks in again. He says to me, "what if the police are waiting for us at the fence?"! I just shake my head and laugh. I explain to him that we didn't break any laws. They probably just fenced it off because it's not a paved path up. I'm glad that Andrew is concerned with not doing anything wrong, but I don't want him to be consumed with fear because I don't want it to hold him back from having some really great experiences.

All in all, I think we had a pretty great day. Today is more of a lounge at the pool kind of day. :)

Gloating: Andrew made the coach selected team!!!

Andrew missed the first day of tryouts due to his last basketball game (see below), but made it to the second day of tryouts (out of four days) and he has already made the team! Anyone who knows Andrew, knows he is a pretty BIG kid for his age. His ability to move quickly at the size he is, really impressed the coaches last night. At the end of tryouts, I shook the coaches hand and thanked them for their time. I asked how they thought Andrew did and they smiled and said, 'he's already made the team. You don't even have to show up for any more of the tryouts. We will definetely be in touch with you.' I walked away with a smile from ear to ear. Andrew couldn't believe the good news.

After tryouts, we went to Chick-fil-a for their yearbook signing. Andrew was ecstatic that his teacher, Mr. L., was still there. He immediatly told him all about tryouts and how he made the team.

Andrew had his last flag football game on Saturday and though he lost, he had a really good season. Even the coach agreed. Andrew received MVP of his team! Great job Andrew!

Needless to say, I am very proud of Andrew. He has done a great job in school and has really shined on his basketball and football teams!