Big Teeth

We don't read about stories that involve regular old bunnies that run around in the yard, according to A all bunnies are Easter bunnies and they have big teeth.  With that being said, Easter was a great success this year!  As long as you don't ask me about my commute Monday-Friday to work I will tell you that I love our neighborhood.  One of the reasons why is that they always have great activities and events for the kids.  This year was no exception as they held an egg hunt for a few hundred kids separated by ages and each egg had a prize.  

We were a little worried about A participating because she isn't aggressive in anyway, but she got right in there with the rest of the kids.  Of course we knew there was no way that she would cooperate with the bunny picture opportunity, but surprise she did it.  Apparently it is only Santa that scares the heck out of her.

Gotta wear shades

Lets chat about the recent weather.  Two months ago we spent as much time outside as possible because it was unusually cool for our area.  The weather was in the 70s and 80s and we tried to soak every minute of it up.  We went on bike rides, spent a good amount of time swimming and of course Grant could be found camped out on the patio watching tv.

a leisurely bike ride for A, not so much for Grant who has to pedal for both of them.

...today is another story

We try to spend as much time indoors as possible not only because it is 100 degrees outside, but because the lack of rain in our area has not helped to contain all of the fires.  Our house is now plagued with runny noses and soar throats because we are living in a constant state of smokey haze.  The weather can stay hot, but the smoke is a real killer.

In the 8th

The clock is ticking, my belly is growing and I am nothing short of ready for this baby to get here.  As of yesterday we are in the 33rd week, but we should really only have 6 weeks to go because they are going to induce in my 39th week.  Here is some of the information everyone always seems to want to know...

How do you feel: Hot (high of 100 degrees today) and huge (yes, bigger than with A)

How does this compare to your pregnancy with A:  Of course there is far less time to nap this go around and I had an iron deficiency so we are getting the iron taken care of with pills and more and more of my activities with A involve the seated position.  I seem to feel every ache and pain this time where with A there were none until delivery.  Oh and the joke in the family is how bad my sciatica is.  There are times that my legs will just fall out from under me because this little girl is sitting very low and is literally getting on my nerves.

Weight gain:  With A I started out much thinner, but gained about 65 pounds.  This time I've gained around 30, but I look ginormous already.

Name: Penelope is the first and we are still working on the middle name.

Nursery:  Due to my job situation and common sense Grant has convinced me not to go crazy redecorating the nursery.  So my poor mother spent her Saturday stenciling one wall, we bought some new bedding and the curtains can be picked up at PBK in a few days.  A few weekends prior I tortured my Mom with A's new room too, but all of those pictures will be up soon assuming my curtains come in. 

Big Sister:  Big sister is not going to be happy when baby gets here, she is not going to like having to share the attention.  However the good thing is that A really does love babies and tries to get close anytime she sees one at daycare.  A talks to "Nelope" all of the time and will sit very still next to me and ask Nelope to kick her.  When we were sorting through A's baby clothes she kept trying to try on the shoes and said "no fits, Nelope's shoes". 

Are you ready:  Of course physically I was ready months ago, but everything else is going to take some adjustment.  As of July 15th I will be a stay at home mom to one, approximately a week later it will be 2.  Is there anyone out there that can really say that they are ready for that much change so quickly?  Those of you reading and confused about my job I will explain later.  This weekend I did  last run through Target and literally went down every baby aisle just to see what I was missing.  There are a few items I still need to buy, but that's what Babies R Us will supply me with.

Doctor:  We are into our every other week doctor visits and we should only have 1 more visit to the specialist for the super duper ultrasounds.  Still haven't preregistered with the hospital because my insurance is changing in two weeks.  Didn't take a tour of the new renovations, but have managed to inform the pediatrician that we have another on the way. 

ICE ICE Mickey

Leave it to Ya-Ya to plan an afternoon that A absolutely loved.  I know I've mentioned it multiple times, but Adelaide is infatuated with Mickey so when we got to the arena and she started to notice all of the Mickey merchandise A got really excited.  I don't mean that she begged for items, in fact she didn't want anything, she was was in a hurry to sit down.  

Two rows up from the ice and A sat straight up and didn't move once Mickey came out.  In fact every time Mickey went behind the curtain for a costume change A yelled, "Mickey come back, Mickey come out".  

I didn't think that a 2 year old would ever sit through the show, but I was once again proven wrong by little A.

The face was due to the little boy in front of us who kept trying to steal her little mouses.

She is up and then she is down

Balance - no need for a definition just the knowledge that A does not possess such a thing.  Staying on her feet is not something that she is familiar with.  We can't tell you how many times we hear her wipe out on the floor (can't blame socks either, this is FL) and now she will say, "be careful Adelaide" right after she does it.  I guess we know what phrase is used most often in the Gasbarro house.  

I'd like to blame this little characteristic of hers on her medical wonders, but the truth is she didn't really have a chance between Grant and I.  Grant isn't so bad about falling down or running into things, but we are talking about the guy who singed the hair off of his arm, head and armpit this week while grilling.  I on the other hand have a coordination problem myself.  My Dad didn't call me Grace almost all of my life for no reason.  Every time I walk into a stadium I just know that I'm going to trip and end up with a bruise on my shin from tripping up the stairs.  For all of my Tennessee friends, yes I was terrified of walking up to the top of Neyland not because of the view or the fear of heights, but because I knew it was going to be a long tumble down to the bottom.    

Not an uncommon picture taken in our house, she currently is wearing 2 band aids on her left arm, three on her left knee and if I could figure out a way to get one between her nose and eye she would have one there too.  Did I mention she is a picker and a scratcher which makes the healer process that much worse?

Irony at its best - favorite Little Gym activity is the balance beam.

This photo is deceiving, Autumn and Adelaide are best buds at school and Little Gym.  We call them the twins because they look exactly alike from behind though in this photo Adelaide looks like a giant.  Both girls are almost three and only weighing in around 25 pounds.

The gifts that keep giving

Don't be deceived by the photos as A's legs still aren't long enough to ride her bike.  We mostly just stand in the driveway and watch her play with the buttons on the bike.  Every once in awhile we get lucky and she catches the slight slope in the driveway and zooms a few feet.  She loves it, but then we have to chase her which isn't an easy thing to do right now.

What did you get for Christmas this year?  Adelaide has recently started to enjoy a recent Christmas gift, "Daddy gnome".  Kari and Andrew bought Grant a Tennessee gnome for Christmas this year and Adelaide has fallen in love with it.  For the first few weeks that it was out of the box Adelaide would not leave it alone.  We would catch her walking around the house with it, because of course she wouldn't let him live outside.  Once we finally convinced her that he belonged outside she had to visit him everyday which included a pat on the head.

That's correct, the gnomes are multiplying, A liked Daddy gnome so much that Ya-Ya special ordered Mickey gnome.

Nana is so funny

I did a horrible job at taking pictures the week that Nana Adam was here, but I did manage to snap a few.  Last time Nana was in town Adelaide learned how to do, "nana face".  All that means is she squish up her face and start laughing.  This visit she learned the importance of "nana candy" aka chocolate.  Nana makes THE BEST peanut butter/chocolate eggs and A was able to enjoy in the calories with me this year.  The funny part of the story continues because now anytime A wants chocolate she now request, "more Nana candy please".  

A quick walk in the rain while shopping in Avondale before dinner.

Oh come on Nana, I know you have candy somewhere.

Yep, that's the Nana face