24 Weeks

Here's the latest ultrasound of lil' munchkin #2 at 24 weeks :)

We Celebrate Tax Day...Because It's Our Anniversary!

We celebrated our 4 year anniversary on Thursday! 4 years...but it feels like we've been together forever. Maybe thats how it's supposed to feel with your eternal companion!

Shawn took the day off work and we spent some time together as a family, trying to find maternity clothes and something nice to wear for our date...oh, and letting Victoria pick out a cookie from "The Great Cookie"...it's kind of a sick feeling when you pay $5 for only 3 cookies!

Later that evening we hired a Babysitter and headed to Baltimore's Inner Harbor for dinner at Fogo De Chao, a Brazilian steakhouse. The meat and salad bar were incredibly tasty! We ate until we were about to throw up...and then we ordered dessert. I just had to taste their 7 layer chocolate moose cake. It hurt to breath after we were done eating, and walking to the car took some effort for sure! It was a lot of fun though! And Shawn outdid himself by surprising me with beautiful roses, a sweet card, a gift certificate for a pregnancy massage and a manicure/pedicure gift card!

  Here is the chocolate moose cake. They wrote 'Happy Anniversary" on the plate and lit a candle in it. Plus they didn't charge us for the $8 slice of cake.

Dear Shawn,

I still love you so much, it hurts. I know I've said it a thousand times, but just so you don't forget...marrying you was the best decision I ever made. 

A Beautiful Easter

We had such a beautiful Easter this year and to have had conference during Easter weekend was the cherry on top! We started off the morning with a mini easter egg hunt and eating easter candy, of course (we are still eating it actually). Then we started in on the strawberry filled crepes, went for a little walk at Gunpowder state park to enjoy the sun (and try to walk off some of our breakfast), then it was back home for conference, another egg hunt, bubbles outside, and a yummy steak dinner. 

Coloring the easter eggs.

Victoria would pop open every egg and take a little taste of whatever was in it. She's chomping a few white chocolate chips here. A few of the eggs she found hidden around the house, by the Easter Bunny, had a couple quarters in them and when she opened them she would say "MONEY!" With all the money she found in the hidden eggs she was able to buy a Popsicle from the Ice Cream Man the next day! 

You can bet Trixie had to be in on the easter basket...just like last year... 

(Easter 2009-Victoria getting mad at Trixie- almost like she's saying "MINE", which she says now!)

 

Hunting for eggs in the backyard.

Savoring a cookie she found in one of the eggs. She's our little cookie monster...always asking for a cookie!

Cherry Blossoms

Shawn had a contract training all last week in Washington, DC. So we thought we would make a little vacation out of it. He came to pick us up Wednesday night and we spent Thursday and Friday in DC. Victoria loved being in the hotel and chasing the pigeons outside, Shawn loved the Spy Museum and now wants to be a spy ha ha and I loved the free continental breakfast's. Whats not to love about a free huge breakfast? Definitely a favorite meal for me when I'm prego (especially breakfast sausage dipped in syrup...I know, I sound like Buddy the Elf)! The most convenient part of the trip was being able to take the metro train. Traffic and parking are just insane in DC, so taking the metro everywhere eliminated the stress of driving. We had never been on the Metro before, so it felt like a ride at Disneyland...until Friday afternoon when we were packed in like sardines, having to stand holding Victoria and hanging on to Shawn, who was holding our Cadillac of a stroller, because I couldn't find a pole to hang on to for the ride, all while feeling everyone's hot breath on my neck...and then I felt something splashing on my leg...yup, Victoria was peeing and her diaper was too full to soak it up...so my leg, Shawn's toes (and I am sure stranger's legs and toes), and the floor of the train all soaked it up! Poor little girl! 

The Cherry Blossoms were in full bloom while we were there and they were beautiful. We tried the National Zoo out, but it was so miserably crowded we left after 45 minutes then headed back home. It was SO nice to get away from our daily routine and spend a couple days together as a family!

      

  

waiting in a long line for a smoothie...

...and finally getting one!

 

After an evening of Cherry Blossoms we decided to go swimming back at the hotel. And this is Victoria checking herself out in her tankini... 

She thought we were going swimming in the bath tub.

An All In One

I wish I was better about keeping our blog updated...but because I'm  a little behind (and nothing but the usual has been going on) I'll post a bunch of randomness all in one post.

At the beginning of this month Shawn started his "No Sweets" diet. He is trying to go all month with out devouring ANY yummy sweets. None. No candy, no cookies, no desserts...not even soda-except he recently gave into a Coke Zero and Pepsi 0 because "they don't have any sugar". He's been resisting those sweet cravings left and right (I wasn't sure if he could actually do it)...but I can't wait until March is over. It's just nice sometimes to share a dessert with your husband or go out for an ice cream cone every now and again. I've missed that.........okay, you got me, the real reason I can't wait for this "no sweets diet" to end is so that I can enjoy a nice gooey, sugar and calorie filled dessert without feeling like an oinker...and guilty about it!

Although I'm not a huge fan of "no sweets for my sweetie" month, it has done a little inspiring to make our home a little healthier when it comes to snacks and such.

As for me this month I am busy taking my photoshop course 2 nights a weeks from 6:30 to 9:30. I'm the youngest in my class by at least 30 years. Which I actually thought surprising. Despite the often pausing so the...how should I say this..."older ones" can catch up and find their way, it's been a great class. The pregnancy has been going beautifully, which is a blessing! I am over the nausea, getting a bigger belly by the week, and feeling the little baby roll and poke... huge relief. We will finally get to have an ultrasound this Friday (I will be 19 weeks). They should be able to tell if the little peanut is a boy or a girl, but we've decided to wait and have the sex of the baby be a surprise!...although it is getting harder to stick with that decision when I know they can tell me what we are having in 5 days.

The belly comments have already started. And we all know how fast those get old! I mean who wants to hear "You look SO pregnant" when you're not even 20 weeks yet?...not me, thats for sure! I guess I just have to laugh about it because if they think I look "SO pregnant" now, well, they're going to be blown away in the next few months!

Victoria is 18 months now. She's hit the terrible two sassy attitude and tantrums...even in public. That little girl can scream...loud!! It's kind of funny sometimes, but other times not so much. (I know my sister is laughing though-she has 4 kids. Been there. Done that.) Victoria had her check up last week. She weighs 24lbs and is just over 31 inches tall. She is now average for both height and weight. She used to be tall and skinny on the charts, now she's right in the middle. We can't get enough of her sweetness and I am loving all this imaginary play she does with her dolls/stuffed animals, her fake cell phone conversations, and kitchen play. It's way too cute. And now that the weather is warmer she constantly has to be outside. She just recently started saying "Hey baby" to me and Shawn (because we always say it to her). She loves going to the library and the park. She went down a tube slide by herself for the first time, yesterday. We tried to lay her on her back so she wouldn't fall back and hit her head, but she went down the slide trying to hold her head up and arms stretched out with huge eyes! So funny!

I don't know what Shawn and I would do with out her. She makes our life so happy.