Moooo Cows

At the beginning of August John and I took Julia to Fair Oaks Farms to see the cows. I thought she'd be old enough to get a kick out of it, and I couldn't have been more right. John had never been there either, and it really is a neat place. If you live in the area, I highly recommend it. I think it was $10 for each of us to get in and Julia was free. Not bad. And they didn't charge more for all the extra little things there are to do like some places do. We did have to get grilled cheese sandwiches and ice cream, of course! It was a fun day. I think for the next week Julia would wake up every morning saying, "Cows" or "Harm (farm)" because she wanted to go back.

This train was right up Julia's alley. She would have ridden it all day if we let her.

Petting the fake cow. When you go through the barns to see the real cows, you stay on a bus so the cows don"t get your germs. So this was the closest she actually got to a cow. And it's funny, the dairy farm is surrounded by corn fields because they grow their own feed corn to support the cows. So Julia learned that cows eat corn and what a corn field looks like. Well, just yesterday Marlene was telling me that when she takes Julia over to her sister's house and Julia sees the corn fields, she always says, "Cows?" Marlene said she couldn't figure out why she'd be saying "cows" when they were there to see the horses. I even had to think about it for a second before I remembered the corn fields at Fair Oaks. I almost died laughing. My child is so smart.

She put these on herself, if that isn't obvious. They have a cute little 3D movie that also sprays water at you when a cow sneezes and puffs air at you when he farts, it's pretty funny. And it was short enough for Julia to sit through, so that was her first experience with a big screen.

You're looking at the cheapest souvenir in the gift shop... a $2 cow that's made like one of those squishy stress balls you're supposed to squeeze. But hey, a toddler is easy to please! She didn't put her cow down for a week, even slept with it. Goofy girl. All in all, it was a fun and educational day, what could be better?

Julia Spills the Beans

I suppose I've kept you waiting long enough. The news has been spreading like wildfire. Those of you that were guessing girl (the majority) were right. We picked the name Jenna Hope, and I knew it was a keeper when I heard Julia say it the first time. So cute! Both John and I honestly would have been equally happy with a boy or a girl, so we're overjoyed.

It's nice now to be able to call her by name and plan ahead some. I daydream about my girls, both in the near future and later as they grow up. I pray that they'll grow up to be great friends, even if they fight when they're younger. And I pray that they'll grow up to be close to their dear mother who raised them, and I'll get to be an active part of my grandchildren's lives. Such fun things to dream about. I'm not oblivious to the many challenges that come with raising girls, believe me, and I also pray for the strength and wisdom to overcome in those times. But for now, I have visions of matching outfits and baby dolls, and all the fun things that come with little girls.

I've already had the awesome blessing of being able to see my dear husband interact so incredibly with our first daughter, and I can hardly believe that there was a time when I wished we'd have boys for his sake, not believing he'd be able to raise girls as well or love them the same. Shows how much I know. Also shows God's sense of humor, and how much more he has planned for us than I give him credit for. God has been softening my man for the entire 10 years I've been with him, preparing him for these daughters, and every day he shows me in a new way how God is forming him for this task. It's a sight to behold.

So, I'm looking forward to planning another girly nursery and taking a trip down memory lane as I unpack all those tiny baby girl clothes that I've been carefully tucking away all along. The summer is nearing an end already, and with only four months of pregnancy left, I know from experience that they will go even faster than the first four have. We have a second birthday to celebrate, followed by a pumpkin party, and then a time of Thanksgiving. We have preparations to make for Christmas, a basement to finish, an office to move downstairs, and a nursery to set up upstairs. (Boy, I hope that "nesting" instinct kicks into high gear soon!)

We're getting our house ready for you Jenna, even though our hearts have already welcomed you in.

Motorcycle Memories

My Grandpa Gulley was able to come to the church picnic, having just gotten back in town after a motorcycle trip. He walked off with Julia to see the bike and I dashed off to grab my camera. As I caught up with them, I got this cute photo...

He said she was jabbering something incomprehensible until she spotted the motorcycle. Then she started saying "Bok! Bok!" (pronounced like Bach, the composer) That's her word for bike, motorcycle or bicycle. She absolutely loves motorcycles!

He showed her how to push the button for the horn. It scared her at first, but then she liked it. She pushed every button she could reach, and there were plenty!


She wasn't feeling very smiley, I guess. Oh, the many moods of a toddler. She was having a great time, but would not give me a smile for anything.

I remember a baby girl that would crack up if I so much as looked at her the right way.
Hmmm... I also remember putting that baby girl on Grandpa's motorcycle about this time last year...


July 4, 2008

Awww...gotta love a trip down memory lane every so often.
I just can't dwell there, otherwise I get too sad thinking about how fast the days go by. My baby is a little girl. *sigh*

Even as I sit here typing, I can feel those tiny flutters deep in my belly, reminding me that all too soon I will be starting this journey all over again with another sweet baby. I'm afraid my heart may burst. It can hardly contain the love I have for my first child, and I know I already have just as much love for the second. That must be why the tears are flowing now. Such an overflow of love has to manifest itself somehow.

Words fail me now.

Blessed.

So blessed.

I am just so inconceivably blessed.

Preaching, Praise & Picnic at the Park

So I'm behind on posting, what else is new? On June 28, our church had Sunday services at Central Park. It was a beautiful day and a lot of fun. We set up some sound equipment and I heard rumors that people could hear us miles away. Scary thought, considering how incredibly difficult it was to sing with the travel set-up. Oh well, maybe now we have the kinks worked out for next year! Regardless, I know God was praised and that was the whole point, after all!

Pastor Scott

The music man himself, Rich


Julia reading my Bible during the sermon time.
She did pretty well staying quiet and still. As well as can be expected for a toddler!


When I pulled out the camera to get the picture of her reading the Bible, she leaned over and said, "Cheese!" This is that cheese face. The chipmunk cheeks are from the raisins she's snacking on. Can't expect a kid to be quiet without snacks, right?

Following the cheese face, she gave me the world's sweetest smile.

Smiles that pretty are usually reserved for when she is doing something she knows she shouldn't, so I was lucky to get one for the camera.

Feeding Gaga watermelon. I love how her mouth is open. Anyone that has ever fed a baby knows that it's nearly impossible to do so without opening your own mouth. I guess Julia is no exception.

Gaga took Julia on a walk around the park trying to get her to sleep. (Yeah right, but bless her for trying!) When she came back over, Jules had her feet kicked back, relaxing, but was still wide awake. We skipped the nap that day and went to bed early.

My child has a thing for ice. Most kids sleep with a teddy bear or blankie...Julia requires a cup of ice water to go to bed. How's that for originality? Anyway, when they started dumping the coolers, she was all over that ice. I said no a few times, then gave in. A little dirt don't hurt, I suppose. Her little hands were freezing, but she was happy, safe and occupied, the three things every mom most desires for their child!

Boy or Girl?

I put a poll to the right, please vote on what you think the new baby will be!

Different, I am

While so many of the entries I write on this blog concern current events for our little family, this post is a bit different. I have an issue that I simply cannot keep to myself. I suppose it's a blessing, really, and not so much an issue, but since I feel that I am so out of the ordinary in this, I must share. Here it is... I like being pregnant. I mean, I really like it. Don't get me wrong, I suffer from many of the common pregnancy ailments; fatigue, mood swings, heartburn, backaches, swelling, etc. But in spite of all that, I am just plain happier when I am pregnant than when I'm not. I am more motivated and more focused, and I honestly like the person I am when I'm pregnant better than who I am when I'm not. With my first pregnancy, I just considered myself blessed to have such a pleasant, textbook experience with no major problems and I didn't really think too much of it. I knew I was different when other women would share their horror stories and I had no such complaints. And when other expectant mothers would say how ready they were to get the baby out and just be done with it, I couldn't sympathize. Sure, I was big and swollen and uncomfortable, but there was so much I loved about having a child inside me that I knew I would miss it, and I wasn't anxious for it to end, even though I did look forward to meeting my daughter. So here we are, and I feel like round two is just beginning. Even though the halfway point of this pregnancy is fast approaching, I'm just beginning to truly feel pregnant. It's different this time, with a toddler in the house, because so much of my attention is on her instead of it all being on my changing body like it was last time. Maybe that's why it has snuck up on me this way. Regardless, I am remembering all over again just how much I enjoy this. And I can't help but wonder, does this make me weird, even a little bit? I already know it's out of the ordinary. I'm sure some medical expert out there would cite some hormonal balance/imbalance as the explanation, but I have trouble with that theory. If hormones are to blame, then that would mean most women who have balanced hormones suffer negative affects when they become pregnant and their hormones become imbalanced. So...if I feel so much better when my pregnancy hormones spike, does that mean I'm all hormonally imbalanced when I'm not pregnant? Yes, there must be something wrong with me. :) Or, I'm just reading too much into this like I tend to do most things. In any case, I feel good right now. And lucky for me I have such a down to earth, practical husband, because otherwise I'd probably end up with 18 kids and my own show on TLC, just because I want to keep these good feelings coming. Somehow though, I don't see John being willing to go that far. Hmmm...I wonder how many I can talk him into...?

Pool Fun

Last Thursday we went to the Munster Pool. They have a big shallow area perfect for Julia and she had a blast. She was tired because we pushed through naptime, and you can tell in some of the pictures. Nonetheless, it was a fun afternoon and I'm sure we'll be back.

This was the "O" face she made whenever she got splashed, which happened a lot of course.

The slide was her favorite thing and I bet she went down it 20 times. It was just her size with big stairs to climb up.

It was funny to watch her walk in water shoes. Sometimes she'd forget and start walking fast and her body would get ahead of her feet and she'd nearly faceplant in the water. She took them off after a while.

But...shoes or no shoes...that girl's feet were wrinkly!