The Newest Herod

On May 25th, our family went to our first ultrasound. The picture above is of our new baby boy. We really thought it was going to be a girl this time. However we were very wrong. If you are having trouble with the picture above he is on his back looking up. We watched how active he is inside. I of course could already tell that he will be a future soccer player, like his big brother. When we were there I thought it was suppose to be a 3D scan. I asked the tech person, but I guess I was suppose to ask for it and pay an additional fee. I guess she could tell that I was disappointed and just not aware because she ended up turning on the 3D part of the machine. She was so nice.
Check out the 3D picture.

By the time she turned on the 3D part he was getting a little camera shy. I think he also just wanted her to stop pushing on him. He has Nick's cute little nose. He is laying on his arms under his face. I was upset to see how skinny he looks, but as I was told from now until the end he will be gaining most of his weight. He only weighs one pound in this picture. His little head is not that big, he was swishing into the surrounding area and she was trying to turn the camera view. While we were at our appointment she measured and checked all major organs such as his heart and brain. Everything looks great.

We are all excited and can't waited wait until he is here!!!

Another Season Over!!!

Nick has finished playing his final game this season. Next season he will play with U8. When he is playing on his new team there will now be no girls. He will really miss his friend Courtney.
Nick is excited to say that he now has six trophies and this one has got to be the coolest.
I can only hope by saying goodbye to so many girl players and starting a new team that we are not saying goodbye to team lightning.

If you click on the picture you can get a good shot of Nick helping his friend Daniel (in the yellow goalie shirt) protect the goal.

Easter

Nick was excited when he woke up Easter morning to find some yummy candy and fun new toys. We have been going through the meaning of Easter with Nick and we are trying to move away from the whole bunny thing. It is really hard to do that when these are all the images the kids see and hear in school and on TV. So the toys were from mom and dad and the candy was from the bunny. He accepted this and it was our first step towards eliminating the bunny completely.
Of course it is so important to get those early pictures that of course he still has his bedhead.

Bowling Party

Today Nick went to his friend John-Michael's birthday party. He had so much fun bowling with his soccer buddies. As Nick gets older I can see his personality coming through. When kids are little they are like us. Nick has specific people he like and his friend John Michael is one of those guys. Nick wanted so bad to find the right gift for his friend. When he got home he was so excited and said John-Michael liked his the best.
One of his favorite parts was when he knocked down all the pins.

Soccer Spring 2006 Season

The spring season has been another fun season for Nick. His old friends are back and he has met a few new kids. Nick is now seven and has been playing with these kids for a few years. Since starting soccer at 3 years old he has found a love for the game. AT this time he really loves that his dad is still helping with many of the coaching duties. The thing I don't like about the season is that I haven't been able to be there for most of the games. This pregnancy has made doing everyday things difficult. I have been sick for most of the past four months. Work has been about all I can gather the strength to do. I hope that next season I will be feeling much better and ready for cheering. As for next season our team will be a little different. We will only have boys playing on the team starting fall 2006. This is the year U8 (under 8 years old) when the split the girls and boys. Just by looking at Nick you can see how much bigger he has gotten. So I guess it's time to split them.
As for the new baby, we are waiting patiently for his/her arrival next Oct. The doctor tells us to expect our new family member on the 7th. Currently we are continuing to talk to Nick about the changes that will take place next school year. We are excited to say that we have already felt a little movement. So we hope everything is going well inside.

He Nick is showing off a little feet work.

Busy, Busy!!

I just wanted to say I'm so sorry that I haven't posted in a while.
We are back to soccer for the spring season. Steven is helping with coaching again. So every night we are busy running around. So far the pregnancy has been rough. I have been very sick and very tired. So I have been trying to get all my work done and still take care of me. The boys have been great. So I can't complain.
This past week I was back to the doctor for my monthly check up. Things are going well. When I was there the doctor told me that we are now 9 1/2 weeks pregnant. I lost a few pounds, but nothing to worry about at this time. While I was there we were going to listen to the heartbeat. The doctor told me it was still a little too soon, but he would try anyways. It only took him a few seconds to find the baby. He was really surprised to be able to find it so easily. Joking around he said maybe he could hear it so strong because there was more then one in there. Of course, the look on my face told him that I only ordered one. Panic was that look...
Once I got back the color in my face. He gave me the expected due date of Oct. 7.

As far as soccer goes we spends Friday nights at the field. Nick is doing a great job playing and he enjoys being part of this team. Last night Nick was so excited to score another goal for his team. He did however need to be told by the ref that he could not use his outstretched arm to keep other players from the ball. Breaking the rules already!!!

BIG NEWS

We have recently found out that next year we will be parents once again. We really wanted this, however it only took us seven years after Nick. If pregnancy was easy and fun then I know there would be a ton more people in the world. Nick is so excited that he will be a big brother in just a few short months. He really doesn't realize how many months it really will be.

For the longest time I just wanted a girl. I see all those cute pink clothes. To be honest, I will be happy for either a boy or a girl.

I will be posting pictures through my pregnancy. At this time, I look no different. I do on the other hand feel different. I am so tired these days. Many days I am in bed by eight at night. I am also feeling very sick but surprisingly hungry. What a crazy time in my life.

Nina Ship

Today Nick with his Grandma and Grandpa Herod went to see a ship replica of the real ship of Christopher Columbus the Nina. He had so much fun. He enjoyed this because this year he was taught about these three famous ships. He was able to go on the ship and see the different parts of the ship. What a great learning experience!

Eric Carle

As a teacher and mother today one of my all time wishes came true. I actually met Eric Carle. For those of you who don't live on planet Earth he is the author of wonderful children's book such as The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Steven, Nick, and I were there 1 hour and 30 minutes before the signing began. We were the fourth group in line and we saw him the second he came through the door. There we were sitting on the floor of Kohls department store waiting to see this special person. Nick was able to tell Eric Carle himself that his very favorite book was the The Very Hungry Caterpillar. I was so excited to see him that I actually couldn't breathe and my eyes were welling up with tears. I know that neither Nick of I will ever forget this special day.

Monster Truck Show

VROOOOOOOM!!!!!!



This is what a mom of a boy ends up doing on a Saturday night. I end of going to the monster truck show and making a fool of myself. I think I cheered louder than all the rednecks around me. I know I can kind of get wrapped up in things. The pictures are hard to see but if you click on them then you are able to see some of our favorite trucks in action. Nick loves the Superman and Hot Wheels truck. As you can see from the pictures the Superman truck wasn't so lucky tonight. It ended up flipping over. I swear the more danger these people are in, the louder the crowd cheers. I think there is something really wrong with that. I of course love the truck Grave Digger. It is so cool with its red head lights and its cool jumps. One of Nick's favorite parts of the show was the intermission motorcycle stunts.
One thing is for sure those beasts are sure LOUD!!!!
I'm so glad I came prepared with ear plugs.

Play-Doh Food Fun

Being a kid is so much fun. It is only when you are a kid that you can spend hours making fake food and enjoy yourself. To be honest I don't even have time to make real food. I never liked to take down the Play-Doh from Nick's closet. Now that we don't have carpeting through most of the house and he is older I guess he is finally ready. He make fake ice cream cones and cakes. I wish he could make real cakes. For now we will just have to pretend that we enjoy eating clay.
Being a kid is the best thing in the world. Being Nick's mom is even better.

Playtime with Bloomie

Wheeee!!!!
Down we go......
Today Nick took Bloomie to the park. The weather was so nice we decided to get out and get some fresh air. Nick played on the monkey bars and he made it back and forth without letting go. Way to go Nick!

After the park we went out to lunch at Bahama Breeze. We had a wonderful day off together with Bloomie. We hope Bloomie can come again another weekend.

Teaching Bloomie

100th Day Celebration...
Here Nick is teaching Bloomie how to sort and count to one hundred by tens.
Today he was busy preparing for the hundredth day of school. His class is making a hundred day of school stew/trail mix. The students were asked to count out one hundred items by five or tens. The snack item that Nick chose was the new Kissables, he can't wait until his friends try this new yummy snack.

I really think he did a great job teaching Bloomie. He took his job very serious. We may have a future teacher on our hands.

Boys will be Boys...

Nick and Bloomie had a fun time climbing trees. During the summer Nick likes to spend a lot of time in this tree. He was so excited that Bloomie was able to join him.

Don't worry Bloomie, I'll save you.

That's what friends are for...

Bloomie Weekend

Tonight Bloomie came home with Nick from school to visit for the weekend. He is Nick's class stuff animal. We always try to have a fun weekend for Bloomie. Tonight Nick and Daddy played a board game with Bloomie. They played the game "Sorry," Nick of course won again. I guess we will have to do a better job teaching Bloomy the game.
Later Nick played the game again with Bloomie and he let him win. Way to go, Bloomie!

It's Good to be Home!

Here Abby is back where she belongs. While we were on vacation she was greatly missed. As you can see she has missed being home with her Nick. I snuck into Nick's room while both he and Abby were sleeping. She however wakes up easier than Nick. This is always where you will find her after bedtime. She has been such a wonderful addition to our family. She is the kind of best friend a boy needs one who likes and loves you no matter what.
Don't we all wish we had people friends like her?
A Dog's love... Endless

Happy New Year

Welcome to 2006!!!
Tonight we had dinner together and did our best to ring in the new year as a family. We had dinner together. We had shrimp cocktails, steak , baked potato, and vegetable. Nick of course ate very little like always, he is a basic meat and potato kid. For the past two years Nick has had bubbly grape juice in his plastic wine cup for our toast. He feels so grown up and has made traditions for himself.
We ended our night by watching the ball drop on TV. It was nice to see Dick Clark back after his stroke last Dec. I couldn't believe that Nick actually made it all to midnight this year. To tell you the truth I am lucky I made it to midnight, I was then in bed at 12:06. What a new year. It is so hard to get old. In the good old days I could make it much later, like to 12:10.
I hope that you all had a safe and happy holiday.

New Year Resolution:
This year I am going to do my best to spend less time at work and with my family. I am going to give myself more time and remember to enjoy life everyday.

Winter Break is Over

Over this week, I was a little home sick throughout this trip however I will miss the wonderful time and memories I spent with my family. I am glad that we choose to get away from our everyday lives and enjoy just being with one another. Now to tell you the truth it is this time together that I will miss.
It was cold and everything was always wet, but I wouldn't have traded this time for a million bucks.
When we get home we need to remember to enjoy the moments because before you know it your children are seven and no longer need to be babied. They are the first ones down the mountain head first and loving it.

WWWWWEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ski Trip: Day 3 Last Day of Fun

Today is our last day of fun. Tomorrow we leave to go home to sunny Florida. We will miss our time off together. However we will not miss how long it takes to get all your gear on just to go outside. First we needed to get on many layers of regular clothing. Then we covered it all up with our waterproof ski pants, ski jacket, and gloves. You need to remember you accessories such as your hat, scarf, chapstick, and sunglasses for that blinding sun. After all those clothes then we must add our ski boots which are impossible to walk in. Then just to have a little fun you must carry your skis and poles. Which is not easy when you can't walk in those crazy boots.
One thing Steve won't miss is the huge blister he has from skiing. He woke up in the middle of the night to go to the car to get our first aid kit. This morning he headed back out to the slopes for a very short time because the pressure from his boot was making him really uncomfortable. Nick on the other hand has loved skiing and is begging us always to go back out.
He has had fun throwing snowballs and enjoying something that he doesn't get at home.
Snow, Snow and more snow!
I on the other hand has given up trying to ski I am just not good. For now I will remain flat on the ground and I will stick to walking.

Ski Trip: Day 2

Today we spent most of our day snow tubing. I thought this would be a lot like sledding and it would be a great experience for Nick. However for all of you who have ever been sledding you would be jealous. First when you were a kid you would try to find the biggest,and best hill, well the work was all done for you this tubing hill had five separate lanes so you don't crash into each other and the hill was 600 feet of the smoothest snow.
Now when I was a kid I would walk up a hill to enjoy about ten seconds of fun. Well they also made the experience much better. No walking up the hill. You get in a line and the hand the cord connected to your tube to the attendant and they hook it on to a pull. You are then pulled up the hill. It drops you off at the top and you just pick your lane and slide. I can not believe how fast this tube went down the hill. I felt sick to my stomach as I traveled down the hill. I just know that if I would have rolled off the tube I would have broken something. Nick on the other hand was fearless. In the beginning he was going down sitting in the tube. He then moved to laying across the tube on his belly and speeding down the hill face forward. By the end these fearless boys thought putting our tubes together would be a good idea. It went so fast. It was like going down a roller coaster on a dangerous cloud of air. We had a blast!!!
When we got back we ended up ordering pizza for dinner and warming up. Remember those four restaurants I mentioned earlier. Well we first tried these places, of course there was a three hour wait at each. Believe it or not people are willing to wait when there isn't much food on the mountain.
We ended the night with some fun games.