Ladybugs & Stinkbugs

We had our prenatal ultrasound today, and it went wonderfully! Our baby is healthy and growing just like it should be. We also found out (though the ultrasound tech was hesitant to say "for sure") that Annie will be having a little sister!!

She is incredibly excited. So is Andrew, who says, "I put my wish in for a girl, and I got it!" Matthew kept saying he didn't want "ANOTHER girl!" but he's having to work pretty hard to be disappointed.

Jeremy & I are, of course, thrilled. Now we just have to commence the baby name argument. :) We both have different preferences.

Anyway, without further ado, here's our Baby Girl Downs:

From 2010 03March

What a month! A lot has happened in November!

We started with Annie & Jacob's birthday. We re-painted Annie's room for her, so she now has a "girl room". She was very excited, and now likes to sleep in there every night. (Before, she would cry because she didn't want to be by herself. I guess she's growing up now, and enjoying being a "girly-girl".)

From 2009 11November

We also had her birthday party and Jacob's combined. I don't know how long we'll do that, but right now it works! They both had a wonderful time at their party.

From 2009 11November

From 2009 11November

From 2009 11November

After their birthdays, which we actually had at the end of October, we "celebrated" Halloween by going down the street to a church's "Midway". We took 6 kids: 4 of ours, plus two more!

From 2009 11November

From 2009 11November

From 2009 11November

They all had a lot of fun playing.

THEN we decided to get a new puppy to replace our 11-year-old black lab that died earlier this year. Dakota is a black lab, too, and is about 2 months old (probably only 6 weeks in these pictures).

From 2009 11November

From 2009 11November

From 2009 11November

Later, our favorite band Dear Future dropped into Beaumont for a visit. We got to go to their concert, and they stayed with us for the evening and most of the next day. The kids thought it was awesome to have Real Live Rock Stars in our house. :)

Of course, then came Thanksgiving!!! I don't have any pictures from the actual day, but I do have a picture of Jacob helping me peel potatoes!

From 2009 11November

We had a great day, even IF my parents weren't there - they went to Illinois and spent the holiday with my sisters up there. (I'm jealous.)

We also celebrated something else on Thanksgiving Day - we told our family that we are EXPECTING BABY #5! We are terribly excited! He/she should arrive sometime mid-summer 2010. The kids are already taking boy/girl bets. I bet you can guess how the lines are drawn!

So, all in all, this has been a wonderful and busy month. I'm sure December will be the same, so don't expect too many blog updates - maybe just one big "December" update like this one!

Our friends the Hagemiers let us come see their new baby chicks. They kids had so much fun, and didn't want to leave!

 
 
 

Andrew is so much like his daddy. He HATES transitions. He doesn't like moving from one class to another - once you get things settled, he doesn't understand why you don't stay there FOREVER! Why mess with what works, right?

So, here is Andrew the FIRST WEEK OF Cubbies:

 


Eventually, he does adjust, though (which is good for Mom's sanity). Here is Andrew's SECOND WEEK of Cubbies:

 


Thanks, Gale for taking these pictures!

I posted some pictures of the kids and the baby chicks the other day, and our friends also posted a lot of other pictures of the kids with their goats & horse. Pop over to the Hag Ranch and check them out!

I had hoped when we moved the computers into the office (with a door...and a lock...) that Jake would stay off my computer. Somehow, he manages to get in anyway, though - either by sneaking in, or waiting til the kids go in there...He loves to play with my mouse and push buttons on my keyboard.

The other day, I came into the office, and this is what I saw on my computer screen:




Yes, you are seeing that right. He had somehow turned the entire screen sideways - not the monitor, he hadn't physically moved it. He just changed some random setting to output the entire monitor sideways! It's a good thing Jeremy's friend Michael was here because he knew how to fix it; I wouldv'e been up a creek otherwise!!

Some people's kids...

We can't get this kid to talk for anything! He's 20-some-odd months old, and the main words he says are "Mama", "Mine", "Dada" and "Guys". "Guys" refers to ALL of the kids. Evidently it's much easier to call them all by one name than to bother learning their names individually! We usually hear this when he is tattling because someone has something that he wants or is doing something he wants to do. The other kids don't realize that they are only here to help Jacob get candy, or go outside when he wants to!

So, earlier today I was encouraging him to say their names. The conversation went something like this:

Me: Say "Momma"
Jake: Momma!
Me: Say "Dada"
Jake: Dada!
Me: "Down"
Jake: Dow! (can you tell everything ends with an exclamation mark?)
Me: "Up"
Jake: Uhhh!
Me: Say "NeNe" (we're trying to get him to call Annie that - it's easier, and less confusing when paired up with "Granny", which he pronounces "GaGa!")
Jake: Neeee
Me: Say "Matthew"
Jake: Muuuu - Guy!

We also feel like we're living in Finding Nemo because he walks around the house saying "Mine?! Mine?! Mine?!" like the pigeons:

Jacob loves it. :)

Last week, the boys got to go to the new Petting Zoo in town, and they had a blast. They really enjoyed feeding the animals.

From August 2009

Granny went to Preteen Camp last week, and brought the kids back sunglasses (which they all thought were very cool). Jacob especially LOVES his!

This first picture is what Jacob will do when you tell him to close his eyes. Evidently, he doesn't realize they will close on his own!!

I love it when they will fall asleep while you're holding them. This stage doesn't last very long, and I'm trying to enjoy every second I can! :)

 
 

My nephew's band, Dear Future, was in town last week, and we got to see them at the Barking Dog. It was an awesome show, and they ended up having a pretty decent showing, so maybe they'll come again! They stayed at our house, and we enjoyed getting to visit with them. Matthew was very excited because "Dear Future" slept in his bed. They kids really enjoyed having an "audience". It was lots of fun.

Check out their music when you get a chance. :)

 
 
 

Okay, so now I'm actually learning how to use a sewing machine!!! This tank turned out really cute. :)