20 Down, 20 To Go

Well, we've reached the halfway point of this pregnancy. Woo hoo! On the one hand, that seems really exciting and like the pregnancy has gone quickly, but, on the other hand, that means five more months until we get to meet Baby.

Here are some belly shots from today.

For the sake of comparison, here's a really bad picture from when I was 20 weeks pregnant with Jack.

So as most you know, I am super excited to be expecting a girl. I was patient for 2 whole days but then I gave in and hit the mall to buy girl clothes! For our Baby and not a gift for someone else. Crazy! I got an outfit for next summer (I justified the purchase by buying things on sale).

A few people have asked what we plan to name Baby now that we know she's a girl. To be honest, when we settle on a name we've decided not to tell anyone. We want there to be one good surprise for everyone when she arrives so you'll have to wait until then to find out the name. Here are a few names we're considering: Sunday Rose (although Kevin likes the spelling Sundae), Honor, and Maddie Briann. Ha. Just kidding.

We've Created a (Cars) Monster

A week or two ago we received the movie Cars from Netflix. We requested it because neither Kevin nor I had seen it and we heard it was fun. Jack saw the DVD and immediately recognized the image on it from a Cars book he received for Christmas. "Car!" he yelled over and over. I thought I'd play the movie and see how Jack reacted. That was my first mistake. He was hooked from the first big race scene, yelling and cheering at the speeding cars. He didn't (and doesn't) sit through the movie, but he asks to watch it often. To the point that he seriously asks shortly after waking up and all day until he goes to bed.

Luckily we now have other Cars activities to feed his craving. Jack often colors in his Cars coloring book. Here he is with the book that started it all.

How can I resist playing a bit of the movie for Jack when I see this?

I tried to get another video of Jack talking about Cars, but he saw the camera and said, "Cheese!"

Fun at the Y

Last week we joined the Niceville YMCA and we are so glad we did. The Niceville Y is fairly small, but it has a good amount of cardio and weighlifting equipment, an indoor pool and a child watch facility for Jack. As part of our membership package we can go to any Emerald Coast Y, including the brand new Destin facility.

Jack and I went to the Destin Y yesterday after gymnastics class and it is freaking awesome! There are amazing outdoor pools and we were literally the only people in the spray park and family pool for the first 15 minutes we were there.

The family pool has a beach entry area where the water goes from nothing to 3 feet so it was perfect for us. Jack could play and walk around by himself and I could sit near him the shallow water and relax.

There were noodles ("noonoos" in Jack speak) available for play so Jack used one and he loved it. He got the hang of it right away and wanted to float on it by himself without my help. I honestly had to put down the camera and run to get Jack after taking this photo because he started doggy paddling towards the deeper end.

We will definitely be regulars at the pool this summer!

It's a...

GIRL!

We're back from the "big" ultrasound and Jack is going to have a little sister!

As you know, we were more than a little excited about the ultrasound.

Baby cooperated enough to show us her goods, but she wasn't really posing pretty for any other pictures. Here's her profile: This picture is her face (kind of freaky looking) with an arm by her head. This picture is her face on the right and arms and legs on the left in the, what else, fetal position.
Here is the picture that tell us she's a girl. You can compare to Jack's below.

Baby was pretty active during the ultrasound and put her hand to her mouth a few times, which we found totally adorable. Her heart was beating at 148 beats per minute. She measured right on track according to the due date and weighed in at an estimated 10 ounces.

We are thrilled.

Happy Fourth!

Jack and I went to the Jenn and STUFR Edwards' house for a delicious grilled dinner with two other couples and their boys. There were 7 adults and 7 boys - who says fighter pilots don't have boys? Jack was in ball and car heaven. He had a great time trying to keep up with the bigger boys.

While I enjoyed the delicious food Jen and STUFR cooked and grilled, Jack was more in the mood for potato chips and a hot dog bun. So festive of him. Clearly, though, his favorite part of dinner was the ice cream dessert.

Mr. Independent

...is very, very sleepy. We had to wake up early this morning to take Kevin to the airport and apparently it was too much for even our little early bird because he fell asleep at the table during lunch!

Kevin is in Quincy, Illinois this weekend for the wedding of his good friend Brian Budde. Jack and I are sorry to miss it but we trust Kevin will have a good time for all of us.

Some friends were kind enough to invite Jack and I over for dinner so we'll be heading to the Edwards' later for some holiday festivities.

Mom's Little Helper

Even simple tasks are fun if you have the right company. Jack proved that today when we went to get the mail. He asked to read every piece of mail, loaded each onto his bike and pushed it all home for me. It was all his own doing and it made our walk to and from the mailbox much more entertaining than normal.

When we got back with the mail, Jack wanted to help clean by sweeping the driveway and the street. Could he be any cuter?