Make your guesses!

We had a really busy week around here. There was something up for us every single evening from Sunday on except for last night, so it felt good to just put on sweat pants and relax! We did make it to the mall last night for about an hour where we got a treat and did some window shopping. I was shocked to catch my reflection in the mall mirrors a couple of times - I'm HUGE!! I said this to Erik and he didn't argue with me, so I know it's not just me that thinks I look like a whale already. How can I possibly grow for 6 more weeks yet??

As the due date draws nearer I'm finding myself constantly thinking about whether this baby will be a boy or a girl and when he or she will decide to make an appearance. Several of you posted your gender predictions a few months ago, but let's make it official - just for fun please post your guess for baby's gender, birthdate and weight. (FYI: Micah was 3 days overdue and weighed in at 7 lbs, 15 oz). As a reminder, my due date is November 13. Check out this ultrasound picture of baby's profile at 18 weeks in case it helps :)

Big Shoes to Fill

Micah likes wearing Mommy & Daddy's shoes around the house...

These will be the last of the current pictures for awhile. We had to take the ol' Pentax Optio back into the shop for more repairs. The camera was still functioning, so I was personally procrastinating taking it in, but Erik wanted to take advantage of the warranty that we paid so much money for - and he's right. Besides, apparently if you have to take it in 3 times they'll give you a brand new camera. So, hopefully something else goes wrong before our warranty is up :)

We had a good - but busy - week. Erik LOVES his job and even though he's exhausted at the end of the day, he comes home extremely excited (What? Erik? Excited??). It's refreshing to see him doing something that he takes so much pride in. It's taking a little getting used to to have a husband who's actually gone 40+ hours in the week, but it feels good to know that he's working for himself and loving every minute of it. Amazingly, his Crohn's hasn't been an issue once for him this week - so thank the Lord for that! But, his knees were acting up on him so we're praying that his body would be able to withstand the hard work.

Today marks 33 weeks of pregnancy - only about 7 weeks to go! Half of me would love for this baby to come early but the other half is hoping for some time to get things done around here - one of those being the swimming lessons that I finally signed Micah up for. I've been meaning to do this for awhile and this is my last chance before the baby comes. The only thing is that the last couple of lessons fall on the week of my due date. I'm not sure yet how this is all going to pan out, but maybe someone will be able to fill in for me if need be. I just knew I needed to do it now because once baby comes it will be nearly impossible for me to get away with Micah for a half hour swim class.
I also have some big plans to finish my Christmas shopping (I already started at IKEA on the weekend!) as well as get some things in order around the house. I pulled out the infant car seat the other day and I've been washing and organizing all the newborn clothes. I'm even starting to think about packing my hospital bag!

There's not much else to report - Micah is getting over a cold and has been extraordinarily cranky and hardly eats anything. He's been sleeping a bit better despite the cold, though. However, sometimes he tries to crawl into our bed in the middle of the night - I think he wakes up and assumes it's morning time!

A Miracle Birthday

Some of you have read about Micah's little cousin Noah who was not expected to survive his birth a year ago. Today he has made it to his first birthday! It has not been an easy road by any means and he is still the size of a newborn at 12 months, but we celebrate his life today and the joy he has given to our family. Here are a couple of pictures of Noah in July when my sister's family was visiting from Manitoba...

We love you Noah & Happy Birthday!!
To read about Noah's journey, click here.

First Day

Here is Erik leaving this morning on his first day of a new job. As I mentioned about a week or so ago, his original building plans fell through and we were kind of stuck wondering what was next for him - meanwhile he wasn't working a whole lot and the bills were piling up! But the waiting and praying paid off when Erik landed his first framing contract with a Residential Contractor he met at church. Him and our friend Todd will be framing a house for the next 6-8 weeks and we expect this one job will open up more opportunities for the same. Framers are really backed up around here so there's lots of work to be had. It's just a matter of Erik and Todd getting their names out there and getting some more experience. They have both done a ton of framing but this time they are the guys in charge, so it's a pretty big deal. I know they're going to do well, though. Erik was understandably excited and nervous this morning as he left. He's been feeling more stressed lately than he has in awhile which can activate his Crohn's disease. He's been feeling SO good for the last 6 months or so, so please pray with us that his body would be able to withstand the stress.

Yesterday afternoon we took a drive up to the Highlands to take a look at the lot he'll be working on. It's way up on the mountain on rocky soil. The ground is so hard that they don't even have to dig a hole to start the foundation. A little different from the prairies, I guess...

Micah was happy to find an endless supply of rocks on site.

This weekend Erik was pretty busy gearing up for his first week on the new job and also doing worship at church (x 3 services!) and even some extra drum recording for our worship pastor, but Micah and I had a pretty relaxing weekend. On Friday night Doug & Elissa drove us to the big annual MCC Sale at the Tradex. For those of you who haven't experienced this, it is like mecca for Mennonites! The place is packed out with people and you can eat your choice of Mennonite delicacies from farmer sausage and perogies to roll kuchen and watermelon. And you literally can't walk five steps without running into somebody you know. It's pretty crazy. I didn't have my camera, but you can check out Kirsten's blog for a picture of us enjoying some pie and ice cream.

Saturday was a pretty quiet day, then Sunday was church and our regular family time in the evening. We were pretty excited to watch the Canadian Idol finale followed by the season premiere of Amazing Race! We were pleased that Eva Avila won (still not Greg Neufeld, but what can you do...)

And here's me - 32 weeks and counting...

Blogger Beta - Get it NOW!

OK, so I've followed the lead of Kelly, E. E. and Kirsten and updated my blog to the new beta version. I'm under the impression it will not allow me to accept or leave comments on blogs that are not updated to beta, so make sure you join the club!! It's very easy - just look on the righthand side of your blogger home page and click on the link.

Monkeying Around

One of Micah's latest discoveries - his ability to hang from the kitchen table:

Today is the 13th of the month which means it marks Micah's 21-month birthday and my 7 months of pregnancy!!! I had my doctor's appt. this morning and all is well. Baby's head is down and heart is beating at 144 bpm. Weight gain is... Well, we won't talk about that - I'll let you be the judge (but please ignore the double-chin!) My doctor just encouraged me today by reminding me that I lost all of it after the last pregnancy :)


The other bit of news is that we seem to be revisiting some sleep issues with Micah. He was doing so well for a while and now he seems to be waking up a lot at night again. He never has a problem going to bed - in fact, "sleep" is one of the words we have to spell around here because as soon as he hears it he runs to his bed and cries for his soother. The problem is waking up at night. Whether he's lost his "nukie" or he's fallen off his mattress or he just decides it's time to wake up for the day (i.e. this morning at 5:30 am)... I thought we were beyond all this! We're going to have to get this straightened out because I can't imagine waking up for two babies once November comes!

Bath Time Giggles

Since the little video I posted of Micah the other day was such a big hit, I thought I'd share another clip of him last night in the bath tub. He was sliding around on his bum and thought it was pretty funny stuff...


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Friends

We've been blessed to have lots of different visitors this summer. It's true that we live very far away from a lot of family and friends, but the good part is that most people love making trips to BC! It seems there are always people coming and going around here. Last night we got to have Chad & Rachel from Winnipeg over for supper. We had a blast hanging out with them. Funny how time can pass but it still feels so natural with some people - I think it's the Bethany connection ;)

It was great to see you guys and I am always encouraged by our talks. I hope we can see you guys again soon!!

Oh Boy!

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Good-bye Uncle Chris... for the second time!

Erik's cousin Chris was here in Abbotsford again for a short week between his stint to Cyprus and his next assignment in Nairobi, Kenya.

Here are Chris and Micah saying good-bye this morning just before Chris headed off to Saskatoon (he'll spend some time there before heading off to Africa). Micah finally learned how to say Chris' name - except it sounds more like "peas" than Chris. At least it's something!

I snapped this picture the other day of Erik & Micah - my buzz-cutted boys - watching TV and eating chips and chili together.

Unfortunately Erik's been home more than we would both like. His plans for house-building this fall have halted and now we're looking at other options for him. There are some good possible opportunities coming up, but nothing immediate. So for now we wait and pray for some clear direction in terms of his career.

In other news, I have reached the 30-week mark of my pregnancy. Only about 10 more weeks to go - but Erik and I both agree we'd love it if the baby decided to come early! I'm not going to count on it though. Micah came a few days late.
I'm feeling pretty good other than just BIG! The baby seems to be running out of "womb" as well - as I feel elbows and feet poking and pushing from all sides. I forgot how uncomfortable these last couple of months can be and as much as I enjoy being pregnant, I'm also anxious to have my body back to normal again!

Micah is talking like crazy now - his favourite new phrase from the weekend is "Oh Boy!" and he says it for everything! So cute - we'll definitely have to capture it on film. He also seems to be relaxing a little bit in the large group settings and not being quite as clingy - which was good since there were a lot of people coming and going this weekend. We even looked after his little friend, the J-man, this week. I think it was good practice for Micah to have another kid around who was getting Mommy's attention.

Micah was discovering some goodies in my bathroom drawer this morning...
The funny part is he really wanted to put this "diaper" on his baby :)

Fun Stuff

OK, I stole this from Janelle who stole it from Patti and it is a ton of fun! Here are celebrity look-alikes for Erik and I. Neither of us got a really high percentage with any of the matches but some of the celebrities are pretty interesting...

Who knew I had Johnny Depp for a husband!!!

Family Trip to the Zoo

On Monday afternoon we braved the heat and went to the Greater Vancouver Zoo. Erik had some days off this week, so we took the opportunity to have a family day and avoid the weekend crowd.

Micah enjoyed the animals, but seemed more interested in the blackberry bushes lining the paths and the little choo-choo train that kept circling around the zoo grounds.
We brought along a picnic supper and found a nice little table next to a pond of ducks. We didn't realize we'd be chasing the ducks away the entire meal...

A few family pictures from the day...

 

Mama's Boy

This has been a bit of a frustrating week as a Mommy. I've been reading some other blogs recently about motherhood-related issues and so I know I'm not the only one who doesn't know what I'm doing sometimes :)
Micah has been going through separation anxiety for the past few months but it wasn't until this week that I realized how bad it really is! At my First-Time Mom's group on Wednesday he was SO clingy that I could barely walk in the house because he was hanging on my legs. He wouldn't let me out of his sight the whole time we were there. He's even a little scared of family (except Grandma) and won't usually go sit with them unless there's incentive (i.e. a treat). And it's been months since he's been able to stay in the church nursery without Erik or I there. Yesterday morning at church I didn't even bother to try to leave him because I knew it was futile - and I wonder if it makes it worse that we are always trying to sneak away. As frustrating as it is to have to deal with his "clingy-ness", I think what worries me most is thinking ahead to 2 and a half months from now when he will no longer have Mommy all to himself. I was expecting to have an adjustment period with Micah and the new baby, but now I'm starting to think we may have some really bumpy weeks ahead of us. I can't help but wonder if I'm doing something to make him more clingy. Is it possible he's getting too much - or not enough - of other people? Am I not playing with him enough - or providing a "secure" enough environment? Maybe the best remedy for this problem will be a sibling - he may not appreciate the change at first, but he'll have to get used to it whether he likes it or not!

The other frustration has been the apparent need for discipline with Micah. Up until this point we've been pretty inconsistent, but I think he definitely needs some rules and consequences. Last week I decided I would use his crib as a 'time-out' location since he no longer uses it for sleeping. Well, he had a BLAST in there! Running around in circles and making himself dizzy. I couldn't help but laugh and pull out the video camera even though part of me was thinking - what am I going to do? Time out isn't supposed to be fun!!

So, now the crib has taken on a new purpose - a fun "play pen" to put Micah in when I need to get him out of my hair for 15 minutes or so. Just toss a few books and toys in there and he's pretty happy!

So as for the time-out, I think we will try to implement a "naughty stool" or something of that nature. I know some of you (like Janelle) have been dealing with discipline issues already. What's working for you?






And here's a collage of pictures from Erik's Dad's birthday supper on Saturday night. Micah with his Uncle Doug; Micah & Daddy playing with a tortilla chip box (Micah preferred it to be on Daddy's head and not his own); and Micah helping Grandpa blow out his 9 birthday candles (I think there were about 40 more missing...)

Phoning Granny

Micah doesn't know his Granny & Grandpa Harder like he knows his other Granparents simply because they live far away in Manitoba. But, he likes to talk to Granny (a.k.a "Manny") on the phone. Here he is yesterday pretending to make the call to Boissevain.

OK, let's see here... 1-2-0-4...
"Granny, are you there?" 

Buzzed

Erik convinced me to let him give Micah a buzz cut the other day. We were kind of thinking of letting his hair grow out for awhile, but it was just starting to look like a helmut of white fuzz on his head.
Here are a few pictures from the last couple of days - Micah enjoying some cream cheese icing and playing outside yesterday afternoon...

The view from up here...

I'm happy to report that my bladder/kidney issue seems to have resolved itself. I haven't had any more irritation or pain since Monday evening and I'm hoping that it won't return! I think that I may have passed a very small stone, but we shall see in a few months. Last they checked, I had 2 stones in my left kidney. I'm scheduled to have another kidney x-ray after the baby's born to check things out again so we'll see if there's one less in there!

28 weeks and Problem-Free??

Today marks 28 weeks of pregnancy for me! This afternoon I had my 6 month appointment. Erik and Micah came along today and Micah freaked out when he saw the doctor (bad memories, I guess). He didn't feel safe, even though the doctor was poking at me and not him. When he was measuring my belly and listening for the baby's heartbeat, Micah was very concerned for me! What a sensitive soul - good thing he won't be in the delivery room!

Baby’s heart rate was about 156 today. What is it they say? A low heart rate means boy and a high heart rate means girl? I always forget. I had a strong “girl” intuition during the first half of my pregnancy but now I have absolutely no clue. So, it will definitely be a surprise!

The bad news is that I'm feeling the onset of a bladder infection – except that there is no infection. The last time I felt this annoying pressure and irritation was just before my body tried to pass a very large kidney stone about a year and a half ago. The stones that remain are much smaller and should be easier to pass and yet I do not relish having to do so while pregnant. In fact, I even started experiencing some pain in my left kidney today right before I went in to the doctor, but it never really intensified and it hasn't returned. Could that have been the worst of it? I recall having much more intense pain last time around. I did some urine tests today to see what's going on and hopefully all will be well. In the meantime, this bladder discomfort is sending me on frequent trips to the bathroom with little relief. I hope it's all over soon...

On a less painful note, this baby has been SO active ever since I entered the third trimester. I remember Micah keeping me up at night when he was still in my belly and this baby seems to be following suit. It’s making me so excited to meet this little one. Feeling this baby move so much is causing the reality to sink in that in 3 months we will have another child! It’s hard to imagine since Micah is such a huge part of our lives. How will it be to love another little person this much? I know that we will, but I just can’t seem to wrap my mind around it! I worry that my time will be divided – how will we give both children the attention they need and deserve? I guess we'll just adapt when the time comes - just as many other parents have done before us!

The Weekend

We had a pretty relaxed weekend. Thursday night we spent the evening with some new friends from church – Alf, Kelly and their adorable daughter Taeya. They also had invited Brent & Angela – some friends Erik met at CBC. It’s funny how in Abbotsford, everyone gets connected to each other eventually! We had a really great time with them. It’s been fun making new friends and it’s great to go to church on Sunday and feel like there’re plenty of people to talk to. We have been going to South Abbotsford Church since January and have been surprised at how quickly we feel connected and involved.

On Friday night we ended up at Doug & Elissa’s new pad – very cute, I must say – along with the usual family crowd: Nathan & Rosanna and our newly adopted family members, Todd & Brianne. We rented the Disney movie Eight Below – a good movie in and of itself, but I must say that the company definitely contributed to the overall enjoyment of the film. We laughed through the whole thing – especially when we started making up our own commentary for the dogs... funny stuff.

Saturday was pretty quiet around here. But I had to include these pictures from my attempt to make biscuits for supper. Whenever I start to make something on the kitchen counter, Micah pushes a chair up to the counter and says “bake”. It’s his new favourite thing and he’s usually good at staying on his chair and playing beside me. Well, I was measuring flour into the bowl while talking to Erik on the phone and Micah leaned over a little too far to dip his own cup into the bowl. He fell right off the chair and took the whole bowl of flour with him. Micah freaked out - mostly from falling but also from being covered in flour.
Erik happened to be pulling up to the house just as it happened, so I hung up the phone and he found us in the kitchen like this...






































And here is the bath that shortly followed.
It seemed to do the trick in cheering Micah up!




















In other Micah-related news, he is starting to string words together more and more, i.e. ‘hockey puck’, ‘Daddy work’, ‘more please’. But the coolest thing is that he can count to three! At first I thought I was just hearing things. He would pretend to be counting and somewhere in all the gibberish I would hear something that sounded like ‘one, two, three’. We have one game we play where I count to three and then pick Micah up and toss him on our bed. The other day when I asked him to count he clearly said “one, doo, wee”. I was so proud :)

Blackberry Season

As I mentioned before, Micah has gained a deep appreciation for blackberries. The other morning we found the mother-load of berries just up the hill and I picked this whole bowl-full (plus all the ones we ate while we picked, plus the first bowl-full that I accidentally spilled).





Every time we go for a walk now (or sometimes just a drive) and Micah sees some bushes, he yells "back, back!" He is absolutely addicted. I have been finding very interesting diapers in the last few days :)

Here is his response the other morning when I told him he couldn't have any more blackberries.


But as always, he forgot about them soon enough. Here he is saying "CHEEESE" for the camera...

Mid-Week Update

It's Wednesday and there's not too much to report. The big news is that Sunday marked Micah's 20-month birthday and the beginning of my third trimester. I still can't believe how fast it's going! Today I went in for my glucose test (gestational diabetes screening) and had to drink the sugary orange drink. Everyone complains about having to drink it, but I have to admit, I kind of like it. It's like drinking orange crush - maybe a little sweeter. I actually looked forward to it this time around because I remember liking it with my last pregnancy :) I think the baby liked it, too, because about half an hour later it started going NUTS in my belly.
On Monday I have my regular 6-month check-up. Last month my doctor told me I had gained a little more weight than I needed to - not what I wanted to hear! And despite my attempts to keep active this month I know that my ravenous appetite has probably been working against me. We'll see what the doctor says on Monday - his weigh scale never lies.

Here are some pictures from today. Micah has been playing with his baby bath tub a lot since he saw his cousin Noah getting a bath in it during their visit. Today I showed him how we could give his baby a bath. He decided it would be more fun to get in the bath with her. He was so cute, washing her face and her hands and feet. I'm sure he'll have fun being a big brother...

Portable Toddler

I was SO proud of Micah this weekend. We were invited out 2 nights in a row and I said "yes" even though Micah has never done well going to sleep at other people's houses. He has never really needed to learn since Erik's parents live upstairs and when we're with family he can always still sleep in his own bed. If we do go out, we usually have to head home when it's Micah's bedtime because getting him down in a strange place is futile. We've learned it's just easier to hang out at our place. But, I figured that he might be able to handle it now that he's transitioned to a regular bed. I was willing to give it a shot anyway.
Friday night we went to Nathan & Rosanna's place with Doug & Elissa and Todd & Brianne (friends from Calgary who just moved here). 8 pm rolled around and Micah was obviously tired. We got him all ready and put him down on their bed and he didn't make a peep! We even played a rousing game of Cranium and he slept perfectly fine in the next room.
Saturday night we were invited over by our friends Rocky & Melanie. Micah stayed up until about 9. We put him down on their bed and, once again, not a peep! I feel like this is the beginning of a new era! Add to that the fact that Micah rarely wakes up in the night anymore and is sleeping in until almost 7 every morning - I feel like we've finally "made it" ;) Of course, in 3 months we'll be starting all over again...

This morning Micah and I headed over to Mill Lake for a walk. The Abbotsford Air Show has been on the last few days and we had a good view of it from the park. Micah has been fascinated by all the big planes. We also took time to enjoy the blackberries that are starting to come out in full-force. I think Micah's found a new favourite food...