Mallory's First Weekend Getaway

The Milwaukee Public Museum has a Titanic artifact exhibit until the end of May, so we took advantage of my (last week of) maternity leave to go check it out. We left Sunday after church and returned yesterday evening. It was a quick trip, but we had so much fun!

We took a different route south because we wanted to do a little shopping at an outlet mall in Johnson Creek, WI. I found some great deals for both kids at The Childrens Place and a few things for Mallory at Carter's. Van Husen had spectacular deals on some new work clothes for me.

Sunday's supper was at The Chancery in Milwaukee. We eat there pretty regularly when we go to Milwaukee. Maybe one day they'll open in the Appleton area. They have the BEST beer cheese soup.

After supper we went to our hotel to get the kids settled in for the night. Everyone slept pretty well. Mallory was up twice, which is pretty typical. We requested two beds because Isaiah is not in a crib anymore. Tim started out with Isaiah, but I stole him halfway through the night. He heard me get up with Mallory, and he said, "Mommy?" I couldn't resist that sweet little voice! Tim had been working on a sermon about abandonment before bed. He said after I stole Isaiah from him he knew what abandonment felt like - HAHAHA! :-)

Monday's breakfast was at Baker's Square. I wanted Steak-and-Shake, but I lost out on rock-paper-scissors. (Scissors cut paper, darn it.) Tim promised that we'll try to make it there on our next trip. It didn't take too much to change my mind because we had a coupon for free pie slice with each entree. Tim got Banana Cream, and I ordered Lemon Supreme. I'm going to eat mine for dessert tonight.

After breakfast, it was off to the Milwaukee Public Museum. They have the most ridiculous parking garage. The spots were super small! People were parking on the lines between spots all over the place, but you couldn't blame them. It's like the people who designed the lot assumed everyone drives Mazda Miatas - ahem, Dad.

The Titanic exhibit was really, really good. It was definitely worth the trip! We opted out of the IMAX movie because the kids are too unpredictable with those things right now. I've been to the museum before on a field trip, but it was Tim's first time there. Isaiah really enjoyed all of the things that he saw...except for the Butterfly Garden. He was not a fan. Aunt Jenny would have been proud! You guys can sit out the insect exhibits together when we're in St. Louis this summer!

On the way to the museum, we had pointed out Miller Park to Isaiah. Well, all day long he kept saying, "baseball!" We decided to have a late lunch at the TGIFriday's at Miller Park, which was tons of fun! All of the tables have a view of the baseball field. I've got to figure out how to get reservations there for game time...

On the way home we stopped at Cabela's. Isaiah was a little cranky, but Tim cheered him up. They started shopping for Isaiah's first fishing pole, with was really cool. Tim is so excited to pick one out with him. They are going to have so much fun at Aaron's pond in July. What a special Daddy-Son moment!

I'll get the camera downloaded and post pictures soon.

- becky

Thomas's Friend Isaiah

Jen and I were looking for something (free) to do with the kids, so we decided to take them to Barnes & Noble to play with the train set. It was so much fun! My mom and I took him back a second time, and I'm already trying to figure out when we can go again. I always get a Starbucks when we go, so the sooner the better!

Hey, Mom - could you collapse the stroller for me? HAHAHA

Kamryn says, "Choo choo!" That's Jen in the background - did you find a good book? :-)

Mallory can't wait to be big enough to play, too!

It looks like Mallory is enjoying my Caramel Espresso Frappuccino while she watches her big brother play!

- becky

Getting Caught Up

These pictures are from the beginning of March. (I'm in denial about the weather forecast for this weekend.)

Tim was making snowballs for Isaiah. He liked to throw them on the ground and watch them break apart. We're very glad that he didn't decide to throw them at us!

Look how deep! He had tons of fun walking through this garbage. (Sorry - I'm a little bitter about winter at this point.)

Let's build!

- becky

All Done

Well, Mom's visit is "all done", as Isaiah would say. We had a super fun time, and we wish that the rest of my family had been able to come up, too. Now we count down the days until Mallory gets to meet the rest of the family - both my side and Tim's - in July.

It's tough living so far away. However, I can say that we have learned to make the most of what time we do get together. Whether we're playing cards or shopping or whatever, we always have lots of laughs and make new memories to smile about.

Here's Mom standing in the one patch of snow that we had left (which is now gone, by the way).

Something that's ALMOST "all done" is my maternity leave. I go back in about a week and a half, and I can't say that I'm looking forward to it. Don't get me wrong - I love my job and enjoy working with my fellow teachers. It's just going to be really hard to be away from my children. Isaiah, Mallory, and I have had the bEsT time together. Isaiah has learned so much, and Mallory is growing like a weed. I know that Jen will take good care of them for me while Tim and I are at work. It'll be summer vacation before I know it! :-)

Something that's NOT "all done", but I wish was is my restructuring of the basement. I was able to get it started, and now I'm on the computer instead of working on my latest project. Oh, well. It's spring cleaning time! The Fox Valley Thrift Shop picks up tomorrow, and Goodwill picks up on Saturday. It's time to pass things on that we don't use anymore to someone who will use them. I want a scrapbooking/playroom!

- becky

Nana's Here!

We're having so much fun! Our routine has been to have an outing in the morning, and then come home for Isaiah's nap. We've been so many places - Barnes & Noble (to play with the trains, of course), Archiver's, JoAnn Fabrics, Perkins, the Fox River Mall... Tomorrow we're going to the outlet mall in Oshkosh. I found an outfit for Easter, and tomorrow I want to look for some new shoes to go with it.

Nana holding Mallory for the first time. I love their expressions!

Nana went up to put Isaiah down for his nap, and he put her to sleep instead. She didn't sleep long, though. Tim came home from work, and he kept the kids because we wanted to do a little more shopping.

- becky

Draw My Blood Already! Geez!

This morning, Mallory and I went to Theda Clark Hospital for my follow-up glucose test. My OB told me to go to the hospital lab on a day that was convenient for me. I would not need to make an appointment. She was going to order a 2 hour glucose test to be sure my gestational diabetes is gone.

So we get to the hospital, and the lab tech asks if I had eaten my 100 gram carbohydrate meal. Excuse me? I was told NOT to eat. After she called the doc's office and I walked over there, we got it all straightened out. Apparently, the doctor's office put the wrong order in the computer.

It was an hour before my first blood draw, then I drank the orange glucose drink. Mallory and I had to stay at the hospital for the 2 hours until the next blood draw in case I had some kind of weird reaction.

We finally got home around noon. I was STARVING! I took my blood sugar when I got home, and I think it was in the normal range. We'll see what the final call is from the doc's office when they get the lab report. Hopefully I'll find out soon.

- becky

Another Week Goes By

I can't believe it's been an entire week since I have blogged. That is very unlike me! We must have been busy.

I honestly can't remember everything that we've done. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday were pretty regular days. Wednesdays are so busy right now during Lent. We go to church for supper at 5:30, church at 6:30, and youth or choir at 7:30.

I took the kids to Manitowoc on Thursday to visit my friend Tori from work. She has a baby at the beginning of March. Little Andrew is so adorable! He has two big sisters, Emma and Madysen, who absolutely lOvE him! We're going to go back and visit again this Tuesday. It's always fun to have a friend on maternity leave at the same time. :-)

I took Isaiah to play with the trains at Barnes & Noble. We will DEFINITELY be doing that again! He had a great time! I think he could have played there all day. While I was there, I got him a book about potty training called The Potty Train. The book is fantastic, but now he's walking around saying, "Chugga-Chugga Poo-Poo!" Oh, dear. Hopefully it will just be "choo-choo" in public!

I have only 3 more weeks on leave from work. My time with my kids is going by so fast. It's going to be really tough to go back, so I'm not letting myself think about it just yet.

Mom is coming to visit on Wednesday!!! I am so, so excited for her to see Isaiah and Mallory! We're going to have tons of fun while she is here. Shopping at the outlet mall in Oshkosh, eating A&W and drinking root beer in frozen mugs, taking walks (now that it's a little warmer!), beating her at cards...

I'll try to be better about blogging. It comes in handy for scrapbooking; it helps me to remember when things happen!

- becky

The Lock-In

I don't know what it is about Saturday nights. We never sleep. I think Isaiah and Mallory have a conspiracy going on, too. It's like they take turns waking us up at night.

Last night was Isaiah's turn. (Mallory slept GREAT - all night in her own bed, waking up only once to eat.) Isaiah woke up at 1:45 in a very good mood. He wanted to talk, sing, and play. We tried him in our bed. We tried him in his own bed. He would NOT go back to sleep. Seriously. He kept naming shapes. Then he would say the alphabet (what he knows of it, which is quite a bit I have to say). At one point he was belly laughing for no reason. That was pretty funny. ;-) I can laugh about it now, but that was a looooong night!

The alarm to get up for church went off, and Isaiah had just then drifted off to sleep. He fell asleep in the 5 minutes before the alarm buzzed. I am not joking. So, we all got up for church (which was not a success for me and the kids today). After early service, I went to Sunday School, and Isaiah played in the nursery. When I picked him up, he had just fallen asleep.

I loaded the kids in the car, and Isaiah and Mallory both went directly to bed for naps when we got home. Isaiah slept from about 10:30-2:15.

He was not happy to wake up.

Hopefully, everyone will sleep better tonight.

Later on in the day, Isaiah kept trying to take Mallory away from Tim. He really, really, really wanted to hold his baby sister! :-)

Mallory turned 2 months old today! I can't believe it; she is growing so fast! We did "photo studio by Mommy" for her 2 month pictures. Here are a few samples for you.

Mallory was in an excellent mood. It was hard to get a good picture because her arms and legs kept moving!

On the 8th of each month, I'm taking a picture of her in the bouncy seat to show how much she is growing.

- becky

All's Quiet

All is quiet right now. Isaiah is napping, and Mallory is chatting with the animals dangling above her pack-n-play. Things haven't been too eventful around here.

I've been working on a paper for a class I have to take in order to renew my teaching license. It's almost finished, but then I have one more to write. I've managed to find some time for scrapbooking which is a nice break. My current project is Isaiah's 1st year book, and I would like to start Mallory's and work on them together. You should see her hospital picture. Oh, my! I've also been making it to the gym regularly. It feels great to be getting back in shape. I'm heading there when Tim gets home soon for a quick work out before church tonight.

Tim has been in his same routine, but busier because Lent is here. He reserved a night for us to spend in Milwaukee with the kids at the end of the month. The Titanic exhibit is at the Milwaukee Public Museum, and we've been wanting to see it. That trip will be just after my mom comes to visit. We're really looking forward to her visit, too! Mallory has been practicing smiles for her Nana.

Isaiah and Mallory are both so much fun. Isaiah asks for Mallory first thing when he wakes up for the day and from a nap. He likes to tickle her toes and give her kisses. Isaiah's most recent "art project" is to shred the roll of toilet paper while he's sitting on the potty. If you come over and use our bathroom, you now have to reach for the toilet paper because we are keeping it up now. It took us two rolls to learn - go figure. Check out his "nilk" mustache! (We've been practicing with a cup.)

- becky

Droppin' 'Em

We are so, so proud of Isaiah!

Last night, I came downstairs to find a squatting boy looking like boy on a stick. I could see in his face that he had a poo-poo coming. We quick put him on the toilet, and sure enough!

Isaiah successfully dropped the kids off at the pool!!! YEA!

- becky