Spring Catch Up!

We have been up to a lot more than just preparing for our upcoming move! Ha ha ha ha. We've actually done NOTHING to prepare for our upcoming move. Except Adam is bringing home boxes from Lowe's..... So we'll have them when we do decide to start packing up. I am SO not looking forward to packing this place up, it feels like we JUST did! And we kind of did. But when I think about all the stuff/treasures/crap we brought with us from Ankeny, I do feel better because we have gotten rid of a lot! But there is nothing like packing up your whole entire house to remind you that you somehow STILL have a ton of junk!

Anyhoooooo......  On to what we have been up to this spring!

On April 24 Hope turned 18 months old! HOW is that possible?!?!?! She had her well-child visit and vaccinations on the 25th.

She weighs 23 lbs 7 oz (65th %ile) and is 32.75 inches tall (81st %ile). She seems like such a nice little peanut to me, probably because at this same age Jeremiah was 6 lbs heavier and 2.5 inches taller! :) He was such a chunk! The doctor was, of course, very impressed with all the words Hope says and the connections she makes. I do have to say, she is a smart little firecracker! A couple of my favorite things she does lately: When pulling into the Meijer parking lot she excitedly starts saying, "Pizza! Pizza!" Yes, that is also where the Pizza Ranch is. Also she gets so proud of herself when she does something. After a meal she likes to get out of her high chair and do the buckles. After she does a buckle she exclaims, "dood job!!!" to herself. :)

She watches her big bro like a hawk and copies him all the time. She learned to pull the bathroom stool over to the counter just like brother does! 

Usually that is followed by "deef! deef!" because of course she wants to brush her teeth like big bro.

J is continuing to do well in Kindergarten- the countdown is on to the end of the year! He likes to say he is "almost a 1st grader" now. :)  He brought home his "how to" writing piece, which I thought was hilarious. 

"How to go to Captain Sundae" 

FYI- drive to Captain Sundae, see the building, get ice cream :)

We had a yard sale at our church, and we used that opportunity to get rid of some of our junk (and get a little $)! Of course, we came home with a little bit of junk, too. I had my eye on a mirror.... I am not a DIY person AT ALL, but this mirror just begged to be bought and turned into something else!

Sandpaper, paint, and a piece of glass and voila! Picture frame.

Hope and I ventured to the zoo with my friend Jill from church and her daughter Eleanor. Thankfully we were able to go on one of our really nice spring days. It was beautiful! And Hope loved seeing all the animals!

I put piggy-tails in Hope's hair for the first time, and the resemblance to a Cabbage Patch doll was just too much!!

We enjoyed a lovely Mother's Day weekend! On Friday, J's school had "Donuts with Dudettes" so we enjoyed some yummy donuts together before school.

Saturday I got beautiful flowers from my hubby and kids!

On Sunday I got some cards, which were just so cute. And I am so excited- Adam ordered me stacking rings! He did a great job!

We got to have lunch with Abby Sunday afternoon since she was in GR for the weekend. Then after Hope's nap we hit Tulip Time for a bit. Basically we walked around, let J do a few carnival rides, took some tulip pics, grabbed sandwiches at Jimmy John's for dinner, and headed home. Just enough Tulip Time for all of us!

Love my babies so much!

Last Wednesday all the schools around here had a half-day because of one of the Tulip Time parades. We didn't venture out to the parade, since it was at 2:00 and that is right during Hope's nap. But since it was such a nice day, we did go to the park for a picnic (McDonald's-ha!) and playtime!

I thought this week would be a good time for some tulip cookies! :)

This past Friday was a big day for Jeremiah- after having 4 (at least) ear infections since December and fluid in his ears that would not drain, he finally got tubes in his ears. I thought we were sort of "out of the woods" with that since he hadn't really had many ear infections since before he was 2! But unfortunately not. The ENT said that if that fluid had not already drained, it probably wasn't going to (at least any time soon), and we definitely noticed at home that it was affecting his hearing. So it was time.

I almost wish he could have had this done when he was younger and he didn't know what was really going on. But being 6 years old and very aware (he asked me, "what is the process of putting the tubes in my ears?" Ummmm, I don't know), he knew a lot about what was going to happen, and he was SO nervous! (So was I). The night before the procedure he didn't fall asleep until like 9:30 pm (after going to bed at his normal 7:45 time)! 

It is so so so hard sending your baby away to be put under, no matter how simple the procedure! I had all the "what ifs" going through my mind. Thankfully everything went great, and really the hardest part for J was recovering from the anesthesia. He was lethargic, dizzy, nauseous, for a couple hours afterwards. They did give him meds for the nausea which did not seem to help at all. But finally they decided to discharge him because he was perking up. As we were getting him dressed he said his tummy hurt so bad! :( So I sent him off to the bathroom to try to go #2, and he ended up vomiting. And after that, he said he felt so much better! Weird. So we were discharged (twice while we were getting ready to leave he said to me, "Wait. Do I already have the tubes in my ears?!"), he took it easy for the afternoon, and by evening he was back to his normal self! We're so thankful that is done, and he already says he can hear better and his ears do not feel plugged anymore. Yay!

I think that's about it for now! :)