First Snow Fall

Robert is Ready for Work

Eric's Career Milestone

A few months after switching brokerages I ended up listing a pretty nice home in Bloomington

When Mom is Away...

School Photos

October marked the second month of Daycare/School for the kids.

Apparently Izzy wasn't too thrilled about school photos.

Enjoying the Fall Weather!

We are trying to make the most of being outdoors before the temps dip much lower and that icky white stuff makes an appearance.  Two weeks ago the kids spent some time with G'ma and G'pa Hempler while both Eric and I were working.  They love helping Grandpa outside and were not disappointed to find a new task of planting tulips.  Robert was a natural at it and Grandpa is convinced he'll be a great gardener...which is great because it's not something Eric or I enjoy!

 

Izzy has mastered the swing!



Starting to help Grandpa!

Izzy was more into playing on the ramp instead of getting dirty with the planting!
(That's my girl!!)

Planting the tulips!!  Can't wait to see them in the spring!

Now they're both working!!

Later the next week we made a trip to Nick and Tori's house to take in some of their local attractions!  We started at Emma Krumbee's Apple Orchard where we picked a big bag of yummy apples and then moved on to the World's Largest Candy Store in Jordan.  Where we again filled up on yummy snacks but maybe not as healthy as the apples!

We tried shaking the trees but quickly learned the only way to get the best apples was to climb the tree!  Thanks Tori!!

Look at those yummy apples!!

My silly princess!

Odds & Ends!

My car needed some repairs this past week but luckily I was able to use the shop's loaner van for free!  The kids loved checking out the van and playing in it. 

One of my co-workers gave me her old office phone for the kids to play with!  Guess I should have brought 2 home. 

When Robert was supposed to be napping today he came out having gotten into my make-up.  Doesn't he look pretty?!

One thing I looked forward to last fall when we had our house on the market was getting away from our big, old trees in our yard and the leaves that came down each fall.  Well little did I know that the house we're in now is even worse.  We picked up some a few weeks ago and were easily able to pick them up with the lawn mower.  Well today the trees in the front yard are pretty much done and we tackled picking them up.  It was too much for the lawn mower but luckily the blower did most of the work for us.  58 Bags and 1 Lawn Trash Bin later the front yard is picked up.  Next week we'll tackle the back yard which unfortunately is more than twice the size with about 10 more trees.  UGH!  Maybe I'll put myself on bedrest.  :)

Robert had a blast jumping in the piles and was a big helper at hauling the bags!

Izzy wasn't too sure about helping out!

DONE!!!

 In other news I had a check-up this week and both baby and mom are doing well.  We scheduled our ultrasound for Wednesday, October 24th and hope to have a cooperative baby!  I would love another boy so that each child has their special place (Oldest Child=Boy, Middle Child=Only Girl, Youngest Child=Boy) and maybe because Robert is a little easier than his princess sister!  I have a gut feeling the baby is a girl though but we will just have to wait a few weeks to find out. 

Catching Up!



Well once again I'm behind on blog posts!  But I hope by the time you finish ready this blog you'll realize I have some pretty good excuses and forgive me a little!  To start let's begin with a few pictures of the kids taken over the last 2 months. 

 

One Last Summer Swim!

During one of the last warmer days the kids dragged out the pool and took a swim in their clothes!  This is what I drove into the driveway to...Eric got caught on a phone call with a client and while he was in the garage watching them they jumped in, fully clothed before he could stop them.  By the time his call finished they were soaking wet and having a blast!

 

A visit to Grandma's House!

Look an Apple Tree!

Pretty tasty apples!!

No trip home is complete without a visit with our friends Lucy & Nolan (Abby too!)

 Izzy is turning into a fashion Diva! 

She insists on picking out her clothes each morning...it's too early for this!!!

And now for the big changes over the last few months!  The biggest most immediate is that the kids begain going to daycare 3 days a week.  They are going to Tutor Time in Apple Valley and both are loving the center.  They get a great mix of education, playtime and socialization.  We made this move for a couple of reasons.  The first being that Robert needed to start preschool.  Even though he won't start school for another 2 years (misses the September bday start deadline by a couple of weeks) we wanted him to get started on a more structured day.  Because most of the preschools in the area are for 1/2 days for 2 days a week we decided to do a licensed/accredited daycare center where he could be there longer and a place his sister can go too.  This also has helped Eric out by being able to get more done on the 3 days they are gone and do more daytime appointments, which was our 2nd reason for starting both kids.  The first day we went we had tears at both drop off and pick up.  Izzy during drop off and Robert at pick up...both were expected!  Both kids wake up so excited to head to school in the mornings and really love their classes, which is such a relief for us!  Izzy is still a little sad each morning during drop off but they say she adjusts just fine and she isn't as eager to leave in the evenings anymore. 

Heading out on their first day of school.  So excited!!!

The final big change, and the true reason I haven't been posting much is that in early July we found out we were pregnant again.  We had been debating whether we wanted to hold true to our original vision of 3 kids ever since Izzy was born but in the end decided our family wasn't quite complete yet.  We are excited to see what the new child's personality will bring and to see which gender will become the majority in our home.  I am about 14 1/2 weeks pregnant now.  So officially out of the 1st trimester and already wanting March (March 21st is the due date) to come quickly. 

It is true what everyone says...all pregnancies are different.  When pregnant with Izzy the symptoms were different so I assumed (and was correct) from the beginning that she was a girl.  With this one I thought I'd for sure be able to tell which gender it was but this pregnancy has brought it's own unique twists.  This time I get most of my morning sickness in the middle of the night...when I want and should be sleeping.  I never get fully sick at this time but I'm uncomfortable enough to make it hard to fall back to sleep.  When the symptoms were so different I worried that maybe there was more than one baby inside...but was relieved to see just 1 baby in the womb at my 11 week ultrasound. 

The kids are excited.  Izzy is a little confused because she still likes to call herself the baby but lately she's been expanding to both her as baby and momma's baby.  Of course then we have all of her dolls that are babies as well so at times it is still very confusing.  Robert has been great and as much as I try to hide when I'm sick he is always very concerned and wanting to help when I exit the bathroom.  We keep asking him if he wants a baby boy or girl and he's been consistent with saying girl.  I think that is what he says because that is what he knows but either way I'm excited to have a good helper when the next one arrives. 

I toyed with the idea of not finding out the gender with this next one since we have plenty of clothes and items for both genders stored in our basement but when I shared these thoughts with Eric, my mom and close friends they all looked at me like I was crazy and told me I'd never make it not knowing.  To which I say...they are right!  As much fun as it would be to find out at delivery the not knowing and not being able to prepare in advance wouldn't work with my personality.  Oh well either way it is a surprise and I know we'll be just as surprised and happy in about 5 weeks as we would in 25. 

With this baby being due in March it puts me pregnant at a completely different time of year than with Robert and Izzy.  It will be nice to not have to go through another HOT summer pregnant but it also means being pregnant all swim season, so still in hot pools and a trip to Florida in January.  I know my team is awesome though so I really don't have any concerns about it being too much.  This is the timing I actually wanted with the other 2 kids as spring is my only real slow time of the year and it just didn't work out as well the previous times.  I guess third times the charm!  I'm excited to be able to enjoy this maternity leave a little more and possibly give up a little more control at work while I'm gone.  Notice I did say a little more and not all.  :)

Now that I'm out of the 1st trimester and the rush of the start of another school year is over I hope to post more often on the blog to keep everyone updated.  But I don't want to make any big promises!  Here is the new ones first picture and there will be more to come in about 5 weeks!!

Robert Turns 4!!

A week ago our little boy turned 4!  We had a great time celebrating with our families and Robert was happy to have all of the attention!  We started the celebrating with my side a few days before his birthday so that my mom wouldn't miss out on the big event while in Europe.  (side note...she left on September 11th for England, Ireland, and Wales and retuns this Tuesday)  On Robert's actual big day we met up with the Hemplers at Red Robin for dinner and then home for a yummy ice cream cake from Cold Stone.  Robert was definitely spoiled from both sides...and loved every minute of it. 

 

He has grown up a lot in the past few months and is a true sweetheart...his sister sometimes might use a different word to describe him at times though.  His vocabulary has really expanded and he loves to help him mom.  We are extemely blessed to have him in our lives and love watching him grow!

 

 

I think he got a peek!

MY BLUE TRUCK!!! 

Scooting on his new Scooter!

Izzy turns TWO and gives us a scare!!

Izzy celebrated her 2nd birthday this past Monday!  She had a fun day playing at home with Robert, Grandma Cheri, and Dad while I was working.  That night we all headed over to Eric's parents house to celebrate with them, Adam, and Lyric.  Izzy was super spoiled and now has a huge collection of dolls, doll supplies, and beds for her babies. 



On her way to the party!

The Dora Cupcake Cake was really cute...until Robert slipped into
Grandma & Grandpa's kitchen and tried to carry it out to the dining room!!

Not too sure about blowing out the candles.  Luckily Robert was willing to help out!

YUMMY!!

Lyric loved Dora's magic wand!

Izzy playing with the dolls sippy cup!



Robert helping take care of the babies!!

The next day started out rough in our house. Robert woke up at 3am crying, fever of 102, and complaining of his ear hurting. I called our clinic system that luckily has a 24 hour appointment service and scheduled him for a 7am appointment. He slept a little more and then really fought seeing the doctor but we weren't surprised when we found out he had a double ear infection. I decided after the little sleep I'd gotten and with battling a cold I'd take the day off and stayed home. All was going fine with Robert feeling better, both kids had a good lunch and Izzy went down for a nap while the rest of us were getting ready for my Uncle Paul to come into town and then to have Nick and Tori all join us for another celebration/dinner that evening. When Izzy woke up from her nap I noticed that she felt warm as well but before fighting her to take her temp and attempt giving her meds I gave her some juice and was holding her in the living room. A few minutes after sitting down I noticed she started to twitch and thought she was trying to get down from my lap but when looking closer I realized she was having a seizure. My mom was walking by at the time and she helped support her head. It lasted about 30 seconds but luckily afterwards she snapped out of it but was crying in confusion. Eric and I quickly loaded her in the truck and headed to the hospital while my mom and uncle, who had only arrived about 10 minutes earlier, stayed home with Robert. On the drive to the hospital Izzy fell asleep but was wimpering in her sleep and I figured she too had an ear infection. Once we got to the ER we had to wait a little bit and she cried in my arms the entire wait, breaking my heart. We finally got called back into the check area and she threw a major tantrum at getting her temp taken, trying to take tylenol, and all the other tests. We were sent back out to the waiting room while the prepared a room for us but this only took a few minutes. Once in the room Izzy had had enough and just wanted to leave. We had a few different nurses come in and thankfully one brought a few toys which helped provide a distraction. The doctor came in to talk about what had happened and when she checked her ears she found a pretty bad infection. Because of this and her fever she determined that she'd had a febrile seizure and did not send us on for more tests. So we waited for about another hour to make sure the fever broke (needed another dose of ibuprofin since most of the tylenol was on Izzy's clothes and not in her body) and had drops put in her ears. They brought her some popsicles and graham crackers which made a huge difference and we finally got some smiles out of our little girl.

Since then she has been good. Her fever went back up a little during the night but since then she's been fine. She had her 2 year well check yesterday and the doctor explained the febrile seizures in a little more detail. We knew that they could be caused from high temps but the highest reading they got at the hospital was just under 102...so not that high. Our doctor said that it can also be caused by a fast rise in temp in that most people when they start getting a fever there is a slow climb but at times the fever can spike quickly and the body can't handle it. Since Izzy had been fine up until her nap and was showing no problems until she woke up I'm thinking this is what happened. Almost all kids that experience this either never have it happen again or they outgrow it by age 6. And although we're not looking forward to the chance at it happening again we are relieved that it doesn't cause her any harm. It definitely took us by surprise though especially since during her first 2 years of life she hadn't had anything more than a cold lasting a few days at most. I should also note that Eric had a similar seizure when he was young...which I think is the only thing that kept me calm at the time it happened to Izzy. Now being a few days out she is doing much better and although having to sneak her medicine in applesauce or yogurt is not a fun process for mom and dad but it does beat the wrestling matches, where we found out she is stronger than both Eric and I together, to take her meds the traditional way. We're hoping her 2s settle down now and we don't have a lot more drama or scares!!

Waiting to be released but treats make the wait easier!

Still got to open presents from Nick and Tori and had pizza for dinner with everyone when we got home.