July - HOT HOT HOT

The beginning of July also marks the beginning of the late preterm period of our pregnancy (34 weeks), woohoo!!  Things at our appointments are looking great.  I am 1cm dilated which is pretty normal for a second pregnancy. 

I know I sound like a broken record but the temps are still incredibly HOT!  Mike took off the whole first week of July to have a sort of vacation at home.  Although he was hoping to be able to spend lots of time outside playing with Ethan, we spent the majority of the week indoors because the temps were over 100 degrees and humid!  When we were outside, we tried to be near a sprinkler or pool at all times!  Otherwise, inside we had lots of fun goofing off and, as always, Ethan had fun dressing up in his gloves and winter boots :)

On July 2nd, during the stretch of over 100 degree days, we were brave enough to venture off to Milwaukee to see the Brewers play.  Although it was incredibly uncomfortable attempting to tailgate on the concrete, inside the stadium was at least bearable with the little breeze!

Mike and Ethan also decided to brave the weather on the 4th of July to go to the parade (I was sleeping after working night shift).  He said it was pretty hot but Ethan loved all of the big trucks, tractors, and candy.

 Later that night we went into Milton to go to the 4th of July carnival.  Ethan went on a ride...

 tried a snow cone...

 played at the park with yet another girlfriend...

 snuggled with dad....

 and even got to shake his booty with Heather to the sound of the UW Marching Band!

 When it started to get a bit darker outside we all headed back to Kel and Chad's house, pulled out some blankets, and watched the fireworks from the comfort of their house!  Ethan even got to sneak in some more quality time with Heather...

 and Lainey!

 A couple of days later Mike, Ethan, and I joined up with Lainey and Mike's mom and went down to the Rockford Children's Museum to play and then watch a juggling show.

 The juggler even ended up sitting right next to us juggling for part of the show, how cool!

 The finale!

 Just another day of dressing up and being goofy :)

 The kid definitely takes after his dad with his love of chocolate!  Chocolate smile!

 Like I said, we have been spending lots of time in the water.  During one of these times when Ethan was left alone for a few seconds, he figured out that when chalk gets wet it turns into a kind of paint.  Mike found him like this, covered from his shoes to his arms in orange chalk!

 Mid-month Ethan and I joined up with Mike's mom, Kel, Lainey and Andrew for a trip to Rotary Gardens.  They had a smelly garden, bubbles, face painting, and a bunch of other outdoor activities for the kids.  Ethan helped grandma fetch a pail out of the well and then went on to get a lady bug and some ants tattooed on his arm.  Although they didn't last long before he demolished them, they sure were cute while they lasted!

 Later that week, we again joined up with grandma and Lainey and went to the Monona Olbrich Gardens to see the new butterfly gardens.  Although we ended up not seeing very many butterflies, the gardens were gorgeous and provided some outdoor run and play time for the kids.

 Ethan of course found the water!

 Isn't this cute?  Two little bears made out of plants having a picnic :)

 Toward the end of the month we had yet another outing!  We went to a Beloit Snappers game where Ethan got to meet Snappy!

 My attempts at getting a good pic of the boys...

 That weekend we had a special birthday party for my cousin, Shannon.  She just turned 18!  Man, it seems like yesterday I was babysitting her!  Happy Birthday Shan!

 Ethan was loving the cake!

 The end of July marks 38 weeks!!  I am almost 3 cm dilated and this little man can decide to come out at any time! 

End of June - Lots of Cousin Time :)

The second half of June was still VERY hot! That meant spending lots of time outside, mostly in sprinklers, pools, and shade.  For Father's Day this year we went to my dad's house for a cook out and pool time.  This year was a bit more special because my brother Aaron, his girlfriend, Sherri, and her daughter Paisley were able to come celebrate.  Although I didn't get any good pictures of it, the most fun was had during the family water fight.  My brother, dad, Mike, and the kids had lots of fun with spraying each other with the hose and throwing each other in the pool.  Here are some pics from the day.

 Grandpa and Ethan time

 Ethan saying good-bye to his new friend, Paisley.

Although we don't usually take pictures of it, I decided it was about time to take a pic of something we do a lot of.  My mom regularly comes over with Kileigh for dinner, dessert, and a movie.  Ethan loves the extra snuggle time with his grandma!

 Although this next picture looks really cute and sweet, what you don't realize is that I snapped this picture almost a half hour after Ethan was supposed to be sleeping.  Needless to say, he was pretty proud of his "tower" he made out of all the books on his bookshelf.

 Another development in June was the transition of our tadpoles to baby toads.  We ended up with six toads!

 At the end of June each year we head off to Rotary Gardens in town to remember Mike's dad, Kevin, on his birthday.  This year we had a picnic at the park where the kids got to eat and play and then ventured over for a little walk through the gardens.

 We ended the walk by looking at the brick laid in honor of Kevin.  We sure do miss you!

 To finish off June, we had lots of quality time spent with the cousins.  Ethan and Kileigh playing around being goofy with their "hats."

 Movie time with Lainey, Kel, and Peg.  We went to see Madagascar 3!!  Ethan loved the popcorn!

 Kind of a random pic in the midst of all the cousin time, but over the last weekend in June while Ethan and I were busy with lots of cousin play time, Mike and the boys (Tom, Chad, and Nick) went to Chicago to see Jimmy Buffett!  Before they took off they were loading up all of their Buffett gear.  Ethan wanted to take a bite out of the huge cheeseburger!

 Over that weekend we were lucky enough to spend lots of time at the Freedom Fest.  It was a free carnival all day on Saturday followed up by free fireworks on Saturday night.  Although the sign said pregnant women were not advised to go on the rides, Lainey, Ethan and I took a trip up in the ferris wheel.  They loved being up high and looking down on Grandma and Andrew!! 

 After the ferris wheel the two kids rode around in this car carousel.  It went so fast it pushed Ethan all the way out til he was squished up against Lainey.

 Later that night, after the temps came down from the 100's, Ethan and I headed back to the festival with my aunt Mel, or as Ethan says, Melon, and cousins Steph and Amber to listen to some music, eat ice cream, and watch fireworks.  Ethan had a ton of fun playing with his older cousins!

 Josh even stopped by with a friend and had a little mini dance party with Ethan to the live music.

 During the fireworks Ethan cozied up with the girls and everyone was laughing pretty hard at Ethan's constant, "woah, that's a big one!"  He even took the opportunity in the middle of the show to scold one of the fireworks for being too loud and put it in time out. 

 Although it was a very fun and exciting day, by the end of the fireworks I think someone was getting a little sleepy!  I'm thinking Steph probably didn't mind :)

Thanks guys for a great weekend!!

Pregnancy Update: For one, our family was hit pretty hard with getting sick during the last part of June.  We all ended up with bronchitis, stuffy noses, and generally just feeling pretty sick.  Apart from that, things are going really well!  The end of June marks 33 weeks pregnant which also means the scary period is coming to an end :)