A Full Falls.

Falls Park is overflowing right now with all of the rain we have had here.  Ryan and I don't remember seeing it this full in the summer.  It is pretty neat to see the rushing water so we have visited the park a few times in the last few days.

I always like to do comparison pictures although it does make me a little sad.  The bottom picture is from last August, it is crazy to see how much the kids have grown and changed in just 10 short months.  For whatever reason, this park never gets old.  There is so much room to run and play and the kids just love throwing rocks, sticks, and pine cones into the water.

Funny how I am so used to Landon's wild and crazy hair that I don't even notice it until I look at a photo I have previously taken!  Too funny.  We watched 2 little boys (probably around 10) fishing and one of them happened to catch a pretty good sized fish.  Landon was completely enthralled and I had a flash forward in time-seeing him and his buddy fishing!  This was great timing as we are going to be able to fish a little at Grandma and Grandpa Strasburg's lake this weekend.  If Landon has the patience to wait I think he would be thrilled if he caught a fish (no matter what size).

Landon found this nest on the ground with two baby birds in  it.  The birds were pretty little and couldn't move, so the kids sat right next to them and watched them for a long time.  It is just such a great joy to be outside and see all of the great beautiful things God has given us.

Laura Ingalls Wilder.

On Saturday, we ventured about an hour and a half to DeSmet, SD.  This is where Laura Ingalls Wilder grew up.  She is most famous for her Little House on the Prairie stories in which this very land is featured.  They have a tour of her actual home and school in town along with a museum.  We had met some friends and decided with the ages of our children to skip that part.  We headed out to the Laura Ingalls Wilder homestead which was located right outside of town and had a tremendous amount of space for the kids to explore and play.

Here's the kiddos getting ready to go for a ride.  They thought this was pretty fun!

One of the little barns had some kittens in it.  Our kids love kittens so we spent a fair amount of time in here.  Ryan's holding the baby with Kadence and Adelyn both petting her.

Adelyn, Kadence, and Landon climbing on some hay.

Here's one of the baby ponies that the kids all loved.  It really seemed more like a dog than a horse.  Adelyn, Kadence, Kade, and Landon playing with (aka chasing) the pony.

I really think Kadence thought we should take the pony home, she absolutely loved it.

Unfortunately, our trip was cut short due to some bad weather heading in.  We missed out on the covered wagon ride to the school with several activities for the kids.  The kids enjoyed the homestead so much, we would like to try and find a time to go back so we could do the things we didn't get to do.  And, of course small tame animals never get old!

About 20 minutes after we left town, we heard on the radio there was baseball size hail reported in DeSmet.  I guess we left just in time!

16 Weeks.

I am trying something new since this is most likely going to be our last little bundle of joy.  The only reason I say most likely is because I am aware that sometimes God has different plans than we do.  There are very few pictures of my growing belly (more like body) from my first two babies.  I think I purposely avoided the camera for 9 months which I kind of regret now.  I would really like to have something to compare this pregnancy to, but have to rely on memory and Ryan's honest opinion (yeah right!).  So here it is, my first belly picture!  I am now 16 weeks and can not believe that I will have my halfway ultrasound next month already!

 I had my OB appointment and had gained some significant weight since last month (not surpising).  I took Landon with me and he was very very excited.  We heard the baby's heartbeat with a doppler for the first time together.  It was so precious to see his big brown eyes so big and the smile on his face was priceless.  The baby's heartbeat was ticking away at 161 bpm.  We heard the baby kick the doppler and that of course was Landon's favorite part.  That was the first thing he told Daddy about.  I would have took Kadence back with too, but she is so afraid of the doctor I didn't think it would make for an enjoyable experience for anyone.  She was just as precious though, she came running towards me with the biggest smile on her face and the first thing she asked was, "baby otay, mommy?"  What a little sweetheart.  We might try to take both of them to the ultrasound but I haven't decided yet.

So, with some very challenging months behind me, I am thankful we have a strong little baby (so far).  I have started to feel a little bit less nauseated which I think excites my hubby even more than me.  The baby is moving away like crazy and Ryan has even got to feel the kicks and squirms!  This has made the whole pregnancy more exciting and tolerable.  Thank you God for giving us this blessing (but we probably don't need another:) )

Happy Father's Day Ryan!

Happy Father's Day to my wonderful husband.
Thank you for being you.  I love you so much ! You are the very best husband and dad.  I am proud of all you are doing and the sacrifices you have made to better our family's life.

Pool Time!

It was a gorgeous day and we made it a pool day!  The kids had an absolute blast!  There were a TON of people there swimming, so I only have pics when we were on our 10 minute breaks.

Landon had fun but did get chilly a few times we had to take some breaks to warm up-which actually meant snack time...

This little princess LOVES the water.  She would stay in it forever if we let her!  She is pretty brave and doesn't even mind going completely under-which is kind of scary!

Looking forward to many more pool days this summer.

No! My do it!

This is Kadence.  She was once the happiest most laid back baby in the world.  On her birthday she woke up and decided that she was 2.  She has changed in temperament quite a bit but we still love her to death.  I keep telling myself that this is just a stage and that they don't name it the "terrible two's" without reason.  Some fun facts about my little angel right about now...

~She absolutely loves loves loves dirt (see above).
~Ants are her favorite bugs but she likes all bugs A LOT!
~She HATES having her hair in a ponytail, but will settle for a barrette if she has to.
~She has finally stopped sleeping on the floor by her door.
~She loves having pretty toes (painted toes).
~She still is a good eater but has started eating far less than before.
~She demands to do most everything by herself (or at least try) stating, No! My do it!
~Her flip flops are her favorite shoe, but she always has to pick out which pair to wear each day.
~She loves her barbie dolls, but they have to be naked.
~She could star on the TV show "Hoarders."
~She doesn't even have to bat her eyes and her Daddy (and brother too actually) will do anything for her.
~She cries pretty dramatically (about a lot of things) and always has real tears.
~She needs three things to sleep: blantey, other blantey, and bear.
~She always wants what her brother has.
~Her laugh is the cutest most contagious laugh I have ever heard.
~She has a nasal little voice and snorts whens she laughs hard.
~She seems to trip and fall frequently and has to have every owie kissed very frequently.
~She loves to sing and dance.
~She knows her colors and is even trying to teach her big brother.
~She really likes Barney ( I know, I know-but at least it's educational).
~She loves swimming at the kiddie pool.
~She tries very hard to keep up with her big brother.
~She has to go potty immediately every time she sits at the table even if she just went.
~She doesn't even wear pull-ups to bed any more!  What a big girl!
~She loves Thomas the train but hates when we hear trains in real life.
~Her hair curls at the ends and is getting blonder with each day spent outside.

I just want to remember every little thing about my sweet baby girl.  I love her so much and she is just growing up too fast!  

Just like my daddy.

Landon is usually 100% boy.  But on rare occasion, a soft side comes out.   Ryan had bought some jewelry for Kadence when we were visiting Kristy and her family.  Little did he know that Landon would get the most enjoyment out of this small gift.  He wore around the earrings, necklace, and bracelets for a very long time.  Which eventually led to...

wearing a pink dress!!  Daddy was not thrilled.  It makes me giggle.  He is only 3 after all, I don't think we have to worry yet.  Besides, I have seen pictures of Ryan as a young boy in tutus holding purses.  He turned out just fine!

Both kids had so much fun playing dress up with cousin Jessie and dancing around!  Too much fun.

My little boy.

This little guy has just grown up so much in the last couple of months it is unbelievable!  It is so neat to see how his thinking has changed and how he is able to understand things quite a bit better.  He has grown from an aggressive, expressive toddler into a sweet and loving preschooler.  Don't get me wrong, he still loves to run, wrestle, hit balls, and just about any other "boy" activity.  But he also loves to snuggle, give hugs, and tell us he loves us.  Lately, he will just look up at us and say, "I love you."  It is the cutest thing in the world.  He is an extreme Mama's boy (unless there is a grandma in sight) and he has a way to melt my heart everyday.

Last night, Ryan and I got a babysitter for the kids and went out for awhile.  We don't do this very often at all (in fact we really need to do it more!) so I was a little worried how the goodbye would go.  Both kids gave us kisses and hugs and were more than happy to see us leave.  They were both yelling "bye mom, bye dad" from downstairs as we were heading out the door.  I told Landon that he had to go to sleep before we got home but I would come in and give him a kiss when I got home.  According to the babysitter he had "gone to bed" at about 9:15 and we got home about 10 (I know we are crazy aren't we).  I checked on Kadence and gave her a smooch, she was fast asleep.  I went into Landon's room and he was laying in bed but didn't look like he had slept a wink.  He sat up in bed and put his arms up to hug me and with the biggest smile on his face said, "Mommy, you're here!!"  He then preceded to give me a kiss and ask if I would snuggle with him.  How could I say no?

Little Feet, Big Feet.

Kadence has been obsessed with big and little things lately.  I had taken these pictures at different times and thought they were appropriate in describing her new fetish.  I could just eat up those little toes of hers.  She has adorable narrow little feet.  She LOVES having her toenails painted and likes to show them off just as much!  What a darling little girl.  Love her so much.

A trip to Iowa.

We headed to Iowa for the weekend last Thursday and had an absolute blast!  Our kids were fully entertained the entire time to say the least.  I sure wish we lived closer we would have a perfect little babysitter!  The shot above is from a state park close to Kristy and Jerry's house.  It was a blast!

Love this one!  The adorable thing was that we didn't ask Jessie to hold Landon's hand, she just did!  She's a natural!

It is called the upside down bridge and the water runs across the road.  It is quite fun to walk through.  Entertaining for sure!

Jessie showing off at the park!

We were lucky in that we got to watch 2 of Jessie's softball games.  It was so fun to be able to see her in action!  She pitched part of one of the games.  What a cutie!

The kids found some mud puddles to play in at the game...

Let's just say they had mud EVERYWHERE!

This picture was taken during the post game huddle.  The kids were so excited and had to sit right with Jessie.  They were feeling pretty cool at this point...

Saturday we were able to catch a double header of Tyler's.  Here are some pictures of the little stud.

Tyler caught, pitched, and played third base.  He is definitely one of the best on the team.  Ryan had a blast watching Tyler and had some pointers to give as a fellow catcher.  The two of them were best buds all weekend and it was pretty cute to see them chumming around.  They have a really neat relationship.

The kiddos had a blast at the baseball games and even made some new friends!

When we weren't watching ball, we spent the rest of the time outside.  Landon and Kadence both just loved being with their cousins.  Oh, and they chased the kitty ALOT.  Kadence called their kitty, "kitty Yeonard" the entire weekend which is actually Arin's kitty's name-hilarious.

We took a trip to the farm to see the piggies.  The kids were actually pretty scared of them.  City kids, I tell ya.  When we first walked in the barn Kadence says, "it's stinky."  Too funny!

What a fun, relaxing weekend we had with the Frasher family.  They are one of the neatest family's I have ever been around.  We can't wait to go back!  I asked the kids what their favorite part of the weekend at Aunt Kristy's was when we got home.  They both said the same thing (which isn't unusual), "Kristy, Jessie, Tyler, and Aunty Jerry (in Kadence's words:) )  Ryan and I agreed.

Baby number 3

Well, I am officially into the 2nd Trimester so thought I would announce the arrival of Strasburg baby number 3.  It has been a long and sickly couple of months for me and I am hoping to start feeling better soon.  I had my first OB appointment 2 weeks ago when I was 11 weeks along.  I have a great physician and am excited to share the rest of my pregnancy with her.

As some of you may know, I had a miscarriage last October when I was around 10 weeks along.  Not only was that a very difficult time, it makes this pregnancy a lot more worrisome for me as well.  So far, everything seems to be going along as it should.  I was put through a little bit of a scare at my appointment when my physician was unable to hear the baby's heartbeat  with a Doppler.   Even though she said at 11 weeks only 50% of the time you hear it with a Doppler, this brought back some major emotions as I was awaiting my ultrasound.  Thankfully, the ultrasound showed a healthy (so far), active little baby moving around like crazy.  The heartbeat was 179 which is higher than Landon and Kadence's ever were!  The conclusion was that the reason the Doppler probably wasn't able to pick up the heartbeat was because the little one was so active!  What a relief.  The ultrasound also confirmed my December 7th due date.  The baby was actually measuring 5 days ahead which is also different for me.  However, unless it is a 6 day difference they do not change your due date.

We have two very excited older siblings that talk about the baby daily.  When asked, they both say they want a baby sister.  Here are some funny, worth remembering things that have been said at our house lately.

Landon: Mommy, why u puking?

Me: Well, I have a baby growing in my tummy and it makes Mommy not feel very good sometimes.

Landon: So you puked your baby out???

Me: No, the baby has to grow bigger and when it gets bigger, than it will come.

Landon: The baby will get bigger and come out your butt, it will be crying and I will hold her and then she be so happy.

One day Bentley (an 11 month old baby I watch sometimes) arrived at our house earlier than he usually does.  Landon was still sleeping when Bentley got here.  When Landon woke up, I went upstairs holding Bentley.  Landon said in a very sleepy but excited voice, "Mommy, the baby come out?"  Then he realized it was just Bentley.  I sure hope the baby isn't that size when it comes out!!

Kadence talks about the baby in my belly very frequently.  She has started giving my tummy kisses a lot for the baby-too cute.  She is also very concerned about how I feel and asks if I am feeling sick and if I'm ok.  She will be such a good big sister!

So...on to our next adventure.  We have always liked to take on quite a bit, but we may be pushing it over the top on this one.  We are praying for a healthy and happy baby everyday!