Thanksgiving

Home Sweet Home. We are back from our trip to Indiana and Ohio for Thanksgiving/Early Christmas. What a fast trip. Flying with a mobile toddler ended up being extremely challenging. We thought we'd fly through the night and Bella would sleep on the way...WRONG! Bella was awake the entire time until we started to descend, but then she woke up and fell back asleep around 2:30 am when we had just reached the outskirts of Indy on the way to Ohio. Needless to say...mama jen was exhausted. The trip back was a lot better, but I still don't plan to be on a plane for a long time. Bella had fun seeing all the family even though it was a quick trip. Here are some pictures from our weekend.

We had to go outside in the freezing weather for a few minutes, so Bella could wear her fuzzy jacket (even though she couldn't really see out of it)

Sitting on Great-grandpa's lap...while Dean tried to hug Bella
Bella got a bear backpack from Auntie Miriam and Uncle Shawn. It has a strap so she can't wonder too far without one of us
She looked so cute in her vest that Nana and Papa T got her, even though she didn't like it at first and tried to eat the fur...the keys ended up being a distraction so I could get a picture.
Snuggling up with Auntie.
Cousins Christin, Tony and Dean gave Bella cars that she loved to play with great-grandpa.

The big game of the season

As Joel would say..."of course THE Ohio State University beat Michigan". The family was all decked out in our Buckeye gear (although Bella napped with Nana through 3/4 of the game and I was at the office working until the 4th quarter). We're not sure what we'll do if ASU wins their next two games which will mean OSU vs ASU in the Rose Bowl....Bella may have to wear ASU pants with her OSU jersey (although I don't think dad is going to let that happen).

Needed Prayer for Monday

After a month of an ear infection that won't seem to go away, Bella is having tubes put in on Monday. We met with the specialist today and she is scheduled early Monday morning. She will be under for about 10 minutes and then home to take a nap for the day. That's all the recovery the doctor says she'll need. He also said that she will be fine to fly to see the family and that her ears will feel less pressure than Joel and mine. Please keep us in your prayers as I am already anxious for the surgery.

Boots and Swings

I know two posts in the same weekend....crazy!

Anyway, the thing I love about Bella still being so young, is that I can dress her up in crazy things and she doesn't care. This morning we were sitting around the house and Bella loves to play in her shoes, so I decided it would be a good time to see if the riding boots Papa T and Nana bought fit....and they did, sort of. I couldn't get them zipped to the top due to Bella being a little bigger than most babies her age, but she loved walking around in them all morning. Here are some pictures and a video of her.

The second thing we did today was go to the park by Nana and Papa's house. Joel was visiting with a friend from law school who was in town, so Bella and I loaded up the car after her nap and went in search of swings. We found them and she loved them. We also found a crocodile to ride and wood chips to play in. Here are a few pictures and a video of her on her first swings.

She loved the swings.

We stopped by Nana and Papa's house and played in the grass barefoot. She was too adorable running around chasing Nico in the grass.

Busy Weeks

I just have to start by saying how immensely busy these past two weeks have been. Joel started work and is gone most of the week, and Bella absolutely loves "school". I am so blessed that she has such a great teacher ("miss hazel") and the transition was more than easy. However, I was reminded of how exhausting it is to be with a toddler all day long earlier this week. It had been awhile since it was just Bella and I and so her ear infection and getting 4 back teeth earlier in the week kept her home...and wore me out. I could blame the pregnancy, but honestly that kid doesn't stop, so after all of my hesitation about putting Bella in daycare I learned that it is a great place for her to run around and have someone else chase her and for mom to have a break (even if it is at the office). She has also grown being there. She talks/rambles on and on when she gets in the car, she eats her lunch and snacks at school which has helped her eat adult table food at home, they also teach sign language which has helped communicate with her, she also loves to clap and dance since they sing a lot at school, so now she moves up and down to music at home, but the best is the fact that she has started to mimic what we say. Today she said "please" (peas) and "thank you" as demonstrated in the video below (well we got the thank you on camera). I also got diaper and juice out of her today.



Here are some pictures from the past two weeks. I'll do anything to keep her entertained, so she helped daddy with the laundry last weekend by hanging out in the hamper.
I went shopping for pants for her and got her a hat for Thanksgiving; however, I believe she is going through a growth spurt this week. She gained 1/2 pound since her check up a few weeks ago and has been eating nonstop all week (which is strange for her) and then she fell asleep on the way home yesterday from daycare (about 4:45) and didn't wake up until 7:30 this morning and then took two 2 hour naps and was in bed again at 6...so my point is that all the pants I just bought her probably won't fit next week. Hope this next baby is a girl because I have a lot of clothes that Bella never or hardly wore. Anyway we're ready for Ohio at Thanksgiving.
Bella also enjoys emptying out my purse and her diaper bags. Joel can't figure out why I let her do it, but she's entertained for a 30 minutes doing it.

Finding a Hershey kiss in my purse.
She has to be like daddy...and wear a matching head band. This was today as they were getting ready for the big game, which turned into the big disappointment....hey maybe OSU will play ASU at the Rose Bowl...that would be an interesting family dynamic.
Well I couldn't leave out the news for the baby in the belly. Right now it's all about Bella but soon it will be about her and her sibling...good thing she plays well with her friends at school. Anyway, I had my first doctor's appointment Friday and everything looks good. I go back in 4 weeks and it's hard to believe that my 1st trimester will be over at that point. Things are so busy that I forget I'm pregnant sometimes...except when I can hardly keep my eyes open in the afternoon or look down at my belly that is starting to show (here's hoping to not as big of a baby as Bella was). Well, sorry this one was so long...just a lot to catch up on. Hope everyone is doing great. Lots of Love.