Boxer in Training

Ethan had a little run in with one of his toys, needless to say the toy won.

Merry Christmas

Okay Grandparents, here are your pictures from the spoiled brat!

We really miss you and hope that all of our families are having a great Christmas.

Wish we could be there but we send all of our love and thanks.

The aftermath

Ethan's special message

2 more days!

Ethan has been so good on not sneaking in a look on his Christmas presents. Eric and I on the other hand have been horrible and we cannot wait. As soon as we get a box in, Ethan is good about placing all the gifts under the tree and walking away. Whereas Eric and I try to guess what it is before we have to put it away. I tell Ethan that we are going to open them soon but since I have been saying that for a while I think he is set on that those are permanent fixtures in our house. I think now that Ethan is older this year; he is going to get into the unwrapping of gifts. Last year, he would unwrap and just want to play with that toy but I think he will just go nuts and start ripping everything.

I am looking forward to the after Christmas shopping. I do not get into big crowds and never go the day after Thanksgiving but I really need more Christmas decorations. This will be the best time to get them at great prices. I have always wanted to go shopping after Christmas but every year we are visiting family and I can’t go nuts. Therefore, since I will be here for Christmas I am taking full advantage of it.

Well we are less than two months away from our little one arriving and she is just as active as ever. Lately, I will get a jab from an elbow or some bulging from either her head or her butt. She is running out of room and I am uncomfortable no matter what I do. Standing, laying down, sitting, it all does not matter anymore. With Ethan, I never got a Braxton Hick contraction but had tons of heartburn. Now I get about 4-5 Braxton Hicks contractions a day and I have tons of indigestion, not heartburn. Lately, I have been busy just trying to get prepared for her. I have washed her clothes, had to go searching for the packed up bottles, and Eric found the bassinet for me. I have a couple more things to do but I think we are ready.

North Pole Express

Conductor's outfit complete with a train whistle

Train video

With only 10 more days until Christmas, Ethan needed to give Santa his Christmas list. What a better way to do it then to go on a train ride to the North Pole to visit Santa and Mrs. Claus themselves. The train itself was built in the 1930’s so unfortunately there was no heat but seeing how it only took us an hour, to get to and from the North Pole, it wasn’t to bad. Thankfully, Ohio was hit with a lot of snow; therefore, we got to enjoy a nice winter wonderland ride. Ethan got so excited when we told him we were going to ride on a train, but it really hit him once he saw it and his eyes lit up. It was a 30-minute train ride to the North Pole where we got off and met Santa and Mrs. Claus. They asked Ethan what he wanted but he just froze, although I was surprised that he got on their laps and even waited to get his picture taken. There was hot chocolate and kettle corn available and a craft area where kids got to write their Christmas list. On the way back to Ohio, Santa’s elves made all the kids balloon animals. We had so much fun and it really got us into the Christmas spirit. This will probably be our last winter like this for a while so it was nice to enjoy the snow with an old-fashioned train ride.

Who wants a big kiss?

It snowed!

This morning we all awoke to a snow covered ground. Of course, as soon as Ethan saw it he was ready to go outside and kept saying "outside" every time he walked by the window. After hearing him whine for awhile, we all got bundled up and he was running out the door. He just kept walking around and was taking it all in. I don't think he remembers last years snow. However, since it was morning, it was still pretty chilly so we started to head indoors. Ethan was not to happy with that decision and just wouldn't come in. The only way we got him to come inside was assuring him that we would come back outside in the afternoon when it got a little warmer. He held us to it because as soon as he was up after his nap, he was ready to go again. This time it wasn't as cold or windy, so it wasn't torture for us. I don't think Ethan even cared how cold it got because he still didn't want to come inside when it was time for dinner. But once we did get him inside, our slow cooked dinner of pulled pork sandwiches were waiting for us. It was a great ending to such a cold day.
Rosy nose and cheeks
I don't want to come inside!

"Christmas is a time when you get homesick - even when you're home"

It has been a very busy week for us. Eric went to Texas to pick out our lot that we are planning to build our house on and got to pick the little stuff like colors, tile, carpet etc… Ethan and I stayed home because a flight out there being pregnant and with Ethan was not worth it to look at several dirt lots. Therefore, Eric was chosen as the lucky contestant to do that while Ethan and I went through all of the designs and just told Daddy what we wanted. We are happy to get that started. Before Eric left, I mention to him to take our insurance for the rental car in case anything happens. Well, he calls me stating that someone hit him from behind, the driver appears drunk and a cop witnessed it all. He tells me he is fine, it was just a fender bender and he needs our policy # because he forgot to grab the insurance. Eric and I are so used to this kind of luck and can’t believe we get stuck in those kind of situations. He says I jinxed him. Thankfully, no one was hurt and the rental car place just needed it to be documented.

As soon as Eric got back, we got started on the Christmas decorations. At first, Eric and I kept trying to convince each other that we really didn’t need to put up a tree. Our Christmas spirits are a bit dampened because we are not going to be able to see family this Christmas. Eric will be too busy trying to finish his thesis. However, the sight of seeing Ethan on Christmas morning without a tree made us sad. Lazy Scrooges!

Playing outside


He is taking the job serious. He better because next year someone else may want to put the star on.

7 months and counting....

The anticipation has really started to grow now that we are in the 3^rd trimester. We can’t believe how fast it is going. Ethan felt like the longest pregnancy ever but I think it was maybe due to him being our first. Now that I am so busy with him and other things, I often forget that I am even pregnant until my belly gets in the way. I feel more excited this second time around because I think bringing home a second child will be much easier than the first. I am not talking about it not being hectic because I know it will be. What I am talking about is that the first time you have a baby you are more nervous and tend to worry about things that are really out of your control. Partially it is because of it being a completely new world and you are inexperienced. I feel more prepared because this time I know how severe the sleep depravation gets, or what things to freak out about and what things are normal, and finally the enlightening experience of transforming from a woman to a darn cow. However, with all that being said I also remember how fast it does really go by. At first, those first weeks feel like months but before you know it, months have gone by and your baby is rolling over. I don’t think you even sleep as much as you did before kids even when they are sleeping thru the night. I just think your body adjusts to being a mom. Even before, I was pregnant, waking up at night felt normal and I always took it as a sign to go check on the Ethan. Now it just happens because of all the bathroom breaks. Overall, I feel more confident about what I can handle when I have done it before. I know there will be times when I will be pulling my hair out but like any other mother; you just remember that it is so small in the grand scheme of things and like all of the craziness before, it too will pass.

I am thankful for my buddy!

This Thanksgiving we did not get to enjoy the company of our family, but instead celebrated the holiday with our military family. Our block got together and celebrated with TONS of food and games. Of course we all ate too much, but we still didn’t seem to put a dent into all the food that was brought. It was a classic case of our eyes being bigger than our stomachs. This rang true for myself because this little girl is not leaving any room for me to really indulge. However, all the food made for great leftovers! We had so much fun and Ethan especially enjoys playing with all of the kids. I think it is because some are older and he wants to act like a big boy too. While the kids were occupied with each other, we adults enjoyed playing games one including Guesstures. Unfortunately due to a certain competitive person who shall remain nameless ~Eric~, the boy’s team beat us by 3 points. We hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving

Terrible Two's

Ethan is exactly 2 months away from turning two but I think he has developed the wonderful habits of a two year old. We are at the stage where he is testing us on how much he can get away with. I love it when I tell him it is time to put something away or not to do something and he just ignores me by acting like he doesn't hear me, walks away and continues with the behavior. We have been using the time out technique, sometimes it helps and sometimes it doesn't. I know it takes being consistent and it is partly my fault because I am a little more lenient being prego and all. I do know that he understands his actions because when we eat out he knows there is only one time out allowed. If the behavior continues, we have no problem taking our food to go and leaving. He understood that real quick. He gets super upset when we go home and he has to sit in his highchair instead of being at the restaurant. By using that technique, eating out doesn't feel like a chore anymore. I really hope we can overcome this stage. We just can't underestimate his willingness to get his way.

Besides the temper tantrums, Ethan has done really well in his new bed. After telling him 20 or so times to get back in bed at naptime, I thought he was going to never get it but it paid off and I only have to go in there maybe three times. He knows if we hear noises, we will check on him so he has become super sneaky. We can hear him running to get in his bed before we have a chance to open the door, little stinker! Instead of it taking him an hour before he would fall asleep we have gotten it down to 10-15 minutes. I don’t expect him to fall asleep in a minute but I know if he is out of that bed there is no chance of him ever going to sleep. Some people have suggested that when their kids switched to beds, naptime became quiet time. I have no problem with quiet time but Ethan is still at that place that if he doesn’t get a nap, he turns into a little gremlin. Thankfully, bed times have been great and there were only 2 nights where he woke up and walked into our room but once I walked him back to his room and told him it wasn't time to wake up yet, he feel back asleep. Here are a few pics that I promised of his new room.

If you notice at the above picture Ethan has that pencil in his left hand. Lately he has only been using that hand to write with. If we place it in his right hand he will try it out for a second then moves it to his left hand. I think we may have a lefty.

Explore!

Today for our playgroup, we met at a local museum. There was so much to look at and do that Ethan just kept busy racing from one exhibit to another. It was all hands on so I didn't have to worry about him breaking anything. Among all of the things to do, his favorites were the grocery center and the giant play box that didn't have sand (thankfully) but instead had tiny pieces of a rubber material like tires. I loved it because it didn't create a mess and he wasn't going to be itching all day. He did however get quite upset when we got to the Lego portion and realized that some of the huge detailed models were enclosed in glass. He tried his hardest to move the glass but it just wouldn't budge. Poor guy, it was such a huge tease.




I have been a very bad boy
"Freeze!" He was caught getting into the audio cabinet.

Not a baby anymore!

This Saturday Eric took down the crib and we introduced Ethan to his new bed. While Eric was taking the crib apart Ethan enjoyed it by jumping on the bed and even waved goodbye to his crib. He was enjoying the transition a little too much and more than I expected. I was ready for the tears of confusion to come but he seemed like he didn't care. Ethan has always put himself to sleep but I was worried that without him being caged in he was going to run wild. Well our first test came when it was time for a nap. He went and got in the bed and we walked out. However, within a couple of minutes we heard noises. Next step, remove all toys and put him back in bed. It took a couple more times before he was tired and crashed out. Well night came and we got to try it out again. I don't know if it being dark helped him stay in his bed but after 5 minutes he was knocked out. It was the exact same way Sunday. We had more trouble with nap times than we did with bedtimes. I hope that he will get the hang of it but I must say that I am quite proud of how good he has handled it so far. I have been having back pain so not getting him in and out of the crib has become such a blessing. His big boy bedroom looks so cute and makes me realize how much he has grown. Such a big boy!

Crazy over Blues Clues

I don’t know what this cartoon does to Ethan but he is obsessed with Blues Clues. He will run around the house yelling “Blues Clues” till we turn it to the right channel or when Eric made the mistake of showing Ethan that Blues Clues is available on the laptop 24/7. So if we can’t find it on the TV he walks over and points to the laptop saying “Blues Clues”. He loves watching it and just goes into a trance when he watches it. He will watch it from the beginning to the end without taking his eyes off of the TV. I am just glad that it is educational and I really like the fact that they ask the kids questions to include them in it. He loves saying “notebook” after Steve will find and a clue and say “what do we need? Our handy dandy….?” It is so cute. He also likes Dora especially when Swiper says “oh man”. I think he can relate it to him because seeing how that is what we say when something doesn’t go our way. I guess the addiction to TV starts now but he looks so cute dancing to “We did it, We did it.” Well it is getting late here so as Ethan says before bedtime, “night night… luv you… by by”

Happy Halloween

This years Beggars night (what they call trick or treating in our area) was last night. We were more excited than Ethan was and I think we even had more fun getting him all dressed up. I personally think it reminds a parent of their days of being a child on Halloween and all the excitement just comes back. All day Ethan was saying Trick-or- treat but once we got up to the door he froze just looking at the bowl of candy. I finally did get him to say it once he got familiar to what was going on and after a couple of houses. Who knows what he could have been thinking? This is so weird, we put strange clothes on and people give us candy! In the beginning, he was so intent on holding his own bag but once it got too heavy, he gladly handed it over. I think he had a blast and I know Eric and I did as well. Poor Eric, we were not sure if he was going to be able to keep up with us with his knee and all but, he said that he was fine and maybe it would help the healing process. Oh yeah, I forgot to say what Ethan’s costume was. He was a 70’s disco dancer/Elvis looking person. This is the last Halloween that Eric and I will be able to choose for him before he decides on his own so we took full advantage of it. We died laughing while we were taking the pictures. Ethan just looked at us as if we were big dorks. Well, Ethan and I need to get back to his candy stash. We hope that everyone has a wonderful and a safe Halloween




Striking his Saturday Night Fever pose


Holding his goodies

Back to the great state of Texas

Today we found out where our next home will be. We are going to go back to Texas, but a different base this time. We are so excited and can't believe we got #2 on our list. We love Texas and have really missed it. Of course our families are on cloud nine because we will be close enough for them to visit more. Not to say the Midwest isn't nice, but we are glad to go back to a warm, friendly, and just a more relaxed way of life.

Productive Weekend

My poor hubby was so busy finishing his “honey do” list today. He has his knee surgery tomorrow and will be out of commission for awhile. There were some things we needed to do and I knew with his surgery and colder weather he wouldn’t get around to it. During the summer right around the time we got pregnant, we started looking for some bedroom furniture seeing how Ethan was going to be booted out of the nursery. I wanted just a natural mission style bedroom set, but just couldn’t find anything that I was impressed with. Well, Eric convinced me that he could make Ethan a bed just the way I wanted. I would hate to say that I doubted my husband’s potential but we needed this to last awhile. Needless to say, he surprised me. It came out wonderful, exactly like I had wanted, and I know that the materials we used was actual wood and not particleboard. Well, it has been in Ethan’s room all finished for about 4 months and we have been looking for a set to go with it. That is when we came across an unfinished natural wood store where you can pick any style you want and they can stain it or just leave it natural. It worked out perfect because we got him a bedroom set that matches his bed and was able to leave the pine alone. However, this weekend Eric had to put a couple coats of poly finish on it insuring if any spills were made it wouldn’t damage the wood. I think we will be starting at the beginning of next month putting Ethan in his new bed. We will see how it goes. Wish us luck. Seeing how Eric has tapped into his inner carpentry skills he also built me a growth chart this weekend. I found this item on the internet and wanted to purchase it but when Eric saw it, he convinced me that he could make it for me. This time I believed him. Since we move so much we needed something that is not paper but I wanted it to be big enough so that I can put all the kids on without having to lug around who knows how many charts. It came out great and looks so cute on the wall. Eric did such a good job that he is really considering making them to sell. Poor guy, he can’t wait for his mid-life crisis to buy him a cobra. He is getting so desperate that he will do just about anything. Sorry so long, here are a few pics of the chart and we will take pictures of his room once all the pieces are in there. We need them to air out.

Black Thumb

Eric calls me outside to see what Ethan has picked for me. I go expecting a pretty flower instead I find Ethan holding part of my sage herb plant.

Mommy: “Ethan, why did you do that? That is Mommy’s plant; you know you are not supposed to touch that.”

Ethan: “Broke it!” Giving me the plant

Mommy: “Yes, you did break it.”

Ethan: “Fix it.”

Mommy: “I can’t fix it; we have to throw it away now.”

Ethan: “Oh Man” (Thankfully, he is saying oh man now because he used to say Oh s**t. I have a horrible mouth and he was repeating after me so I have had to adjust my mouth)

Of course during this conversation Eric is snickering in the background. I will remember that the next time I see Ethan running towards Eric’s newly painted truck with a hammer in hand yelling “fix it.”

Wacky Weather

The weather in Ohio this fall has been so different from last fall. Around this time last year we had a couple days of being in the 20’s and there was even snow, however this week Eric and I have been wearing shorts and sandals with temps in the upper 70’s. I hope that means for a nice winter. Especially, since it may be our last here because Eric will be finding out next week where we may be moving after March graduation. We can’t wait, but I still have to say we may be assigned to Wright-Patt or we may move far a away. You never know what you are going to get. I have grown to like Ohio but I am just ready to try a new place and we desperately need to get out of base housing. Now that I think about it next year is going to be a busy year just from the start with Eric pinning on Captain, a new baby, Eric’s graduation and moving to a new place. All within the first 3 months, we so did not think this out!

Visit from the Grandparents

This weekend we enjoyed a visit from Grandma & Grandpa Haut. It was great to see them especially since it has been such a long time since the last time we saw them. Ethan went right to them and was eating all the attention up. I try to remind Ethan every now and then who his grandparents are by showing pictures and talking about them. Well, it seems to have paid off because as soon as he saw Grandpa he kept saying “Papo”. If Grandpa disappeared Ethan walked around the house saying “Papo” till we found him. Majority of the time Eric and his Dad would be hiding out in the garage but little Ethan had to be right next to them putting in his two cents about whatever they were conversing about. He acts like such a big boy and gives me the look of “Mom, I can have a diaper change later, can’t you see we are talking man talk here”.

During their visit we went to the pumpkin patch where they got to chase Ethan around all the pumpkins and help him decide which ones he wanted to bring home. We also enjoyed a trip out to as referred by the guys “a better place than Disney world”. Are you ready for this…….it was the cobra dealership. Hold all your ooh’s and aah’s till the end people. You should have seen their faces plastered to the window. I think we spent a good hour there and of course I was busy trying to keep Ethan from ransacking the place and touching anything that would take us out of house and home to repair. The guys enjoyed a ride each and were close to tears when we told them it was time to go. Eric is already trying to sell everything we own to buy him one.

Pregnancy Humor

5 months

Now we are halfway through the pregnancy and it is starting to feel real. My belly is bigger now than it was when I was pregnant with Ethan at this time. It may because Ethan left a nice cushion. I am just thankful that every day that goes by she is growing more and more.

IT'S A .....................

GIRL!!!

Today we found out that Ethan will be a big brother to a little girl. I wasn't as surprised because I had a little hunch seeing how this pregnancy has been very different from Ethan's pregnancy. We are all excited and I can't wait to go shopping. Eric said as soon as the doctor told him it was a girl, he suddenly developed an ulcer and can feel it growing. I think what scares him is that he knows she will have him wrapped around her little finger the moment she arrives. What was so funny about this is that all week we have been asking Ethan what he thought we were having and every time he would say "sister". I don't think he has even begun to realize what a sister is or what the word meant, I just think he enjoyed saying sister than brother.

My due date hasn't changed so we are still thinking around the 20th of Feb but other than that she looks great. She seems to want to play at night and sleep during the day. I maybe feel her once or twice during the day but night time seems to be playtime because she is all over the place.

MOOOOOSE!

Today I had another prenatal appointment and everything went great. I was a little worried because I have only gained a couple of pounds but the doctor didn't seem worried so I guess this is normal. With Ethan’s pregnancy, every time I got on the scale it seemed like I was always putting on weight. I know I put on more with him in the first three months than I have with this pregnancy. Lord knows I eat anything and everything. We were supposed to have another ultrasound on Thursday but somebody named Eric forgot about an already paid for golf tournament so I rescheduled it for Monday the 1^st . Therefore, we could all be present when the doctor tells us the sex of the baby. I can’t wait and I know it is killing Eric.

We ask Ethan all the time “Where is the baby?” and he will come up and point to my belly and say “baby”. It is too cute. Other than that, Ethan is doing wonderfully well and he is just expanding his vocabulary like crazy. He loves learning new body parts and repeating stuff that we say. One funny thing is that Eric has said for a while whenever talking to Ethan “Mooooose” instead of saying move. It was more for fun and getting a laugh out of all of us. Well now, Ethan thinks that is the correct thing to say when you need someone to move. I have tried correcting him but he shakes his head and says it louder while pushing me out of his way. You can’t help but laugh and it sounds so cute the way his lips curl together. When it is not so funny is when we were on our cruise and he kept trying to steal our pillows. In the middle of the night, you would hear Ethan yell “MOOOOSE” while pushing your head off the pillow. Ethan 2 pillows, Mommy no pillows. However, my favorite has to be the manners. I am a little quirky about the manners and really push it upon Ethan to say please and thank you but I truly think it is a chance to teach him to be respectful and learn some gratitude. It is so nice whenever I give something to Ethan and he turns to me and says thank you. I like it the best when I ask him for a kiss and after receiving one, we both say thank you at the same time. I know that I am weird but certain things make me smile.

Caribbean Cruise

Yeah Mon!!!!

Well we just got back from our vacation and we are still recuperating from it. We had a blast!!!!! We loved it so much that we are already planning our next one. We went on Royal Caribbean for a 5-day cruise that included stops in Jamaica and Grand Cayman, after our cruise, we finished our vacation with a couple days in Ft. Lauderdale. While in Jamaica we started the day splashing with dolphins, which Ethan loved until they started splashing too much, explored some of the jungle and its residents, visited the Dunn’s River waterfall and finished our day with some shopping and a quick visit to Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville, which was Eric’s highlight. Once we got to the Grand Cayman we went to a turtle farm, a town named Hell (bought postcards from Hell, how weird is that!), went to a rum cake factory, and ended our day with some more shopping. Once we got to Florida, we just relaxed a bit more and enjoyed the beach.

We truly did have a great time and it was great with Ethan. I know everyone wonders how it was with Ethan on a cruise, but in my opinion, it is so perfect for people with small children. Because you only need one day in the islands to get the sights in anyway, the boat is a moving hotel so once Ethan needed a nap we were an elevators ride away from our room and then once he was done we could continue with the festivities and the bounty of food was available 24/7.

Endnote:

The town Hell was as hot as hell, yes, we did have a hell of a time and once we were done we got the hell out of there, it was weird though because I did not see any of you guys there. ***** Okay, I got it out of my system. Trust me, Eric and I were coming up with them left and right. ****