20 week ultrasound

Friday morning we had our 20-week ultrasound to see how Baby #2 is doing -- and to find out the gender.

I've always wanted to know the gender, but Matt wanted to be surprised with #1 so I played along.  With #2, we were like, "Just tell us already." I thought Matt would want to be surprised again, but he was on board and actually went in to the ultrasound with ants in his pants ready to find out.  For practical reasons, it would be nice to know the gender so I know whether I can keep or donate all of Wesley's boy clothes. For other unpractical reasons, I'd like to be prepared for 2 boys and a lifetime of man/boy stink and clodhopper shoes around the house (on a positive side though, I'd never have to go to American Girl and spend a fortune). 

Matt feels that this is a baby girl, and I still feel boy so ...

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...guess we'll have to wait until the delivery room to find out who's right!

Did we change our minds in the ultrasound room? No ... we didn't. The baby had his/her legs closed shut the entire time! At first I was thinking, "What, we're not going to find out?" A little perturbed. Then it sunk in. This baby already has a mind of it's own and if it doesn't want to open his/her legs and show us, well then. So it is. (Although a friend was joking that with it's legs shut, it must be a girl!)

Wiggly toes!

The ultrasound went smooth. It was a pretty docile kid, as opposed to Wesley who was flipping around all over the place. We did get to see the most adorable thing though -- the picture above of it's leg and foot: it was wiggling it's toes! We died of laughter it was so cute and incredible. Already a toe wiggler like daddy.

Sledding today!

We had a huge snowfall late this week and the weather has been frigid! But today it warmed up ever so slightly ... to about 32... and so we dragged the little one to go sledding. Our big park, not too far from our house, has a sled hill. There was a pretty good crowd there, I forget that kids don't feel any cold!

Getting ready with my snowsuit

Look at the smile on his faee!

Sno-Fun-Run

Time for the Sno-Fun Run -- Matt's yearly devotion to running 8 miles in the snow (although this year there wasn't any). He never trains for this race yet manages to run it well and enjoy his schnapps and beer afterwards.

This year was the first time we brought Wesley and he made Matt's smile a little wider! We said goodbye at the starting line, then while Matt ran the two of us ate some lunch and Wes ran loose around the hotel (to blow of steam from the car ride). Then we saw "dada" running and met him for the after party.

While we scarfed down burgers and brats, Wesley played with a new friend on the dance floor - and he was so in his element here with all these people. He loved just going up to the runners sitting down eating and smiling at them, playing with the other kids, and dancing to the music. He helped us get loot they threw from the stage, but we decided to leave early since it was a little overwhelming for him - and we were worried he would get hit in the head with a sausage.

Garfield Park Conservatory

On New Year's day we decided we wanted to be outside but it was too cold so ... we went to the Garfield Park Conservatory. What a blast! It's huge and lush and you forget you're in the middle of the city when you're surrounded by a lush tropical jungle. And Wesley absolutely loved it - he just took off running. It helped that they had a nice children's area, but even then he was totally engrossed by the plants.

Pictures of Wesley

Pictures of plants:

Wait that's not a plant!

Me time

Last year like now, I had about 15 lbs of baby weight to shed and the only way to do it was getting some regular excercise - so I joined a Bootcamp class that was 4 nights a week. It started as a way for me to shed the baby fat, but it ended up being Me Time. I put Wesley in the daycare and enjoyed one hour of pure heaven and hell.

I did Bootcamp until June when I knew it would be hard to keep up with the workouts over the summer months. I didn't miss them too much,  I was outside a lot, getting exercise and there was a lot to do. But in the Fall, I felt something amiss. I never had time to myself -  everything was centered around Wesley and his schedule and his needs. He was getting so mobile and demanding that even a shower was a chore, let alone a moment to myself. (It was also around this time, I was working but not having our babysitter available to help.) I was feeling it bad and I slipped into another set of post-partum depression (the only thing I can think to label it).

Exercise is not only good for the body, I decided, but it was good for my mind. And so was leaving Wesley in the care of someone else for a while.

Since I was pregnant, Bootcamp was out of the question so I found a prenatal / postnatal aquatic fitness class through my hospital. It meets 2 times a week in the evenings and is full of some very fun very pregnant women. I can leave Wesley with husband and get some much needed Me Time (and a nice hot shower after class with no interruption.) It started last week and already I feel so much better. I'm hoping to take it through my entire pregnancy, and even afterwards once I get the Doctor's OK.

Happy 2012

My resolutions for 2012 are to (a lot longer than I thought!))

• Be more active in our newcomer's club group
• Try and get 1 weekend away with my husband before baby is born
• Enjoy what could as well be my last pregnancy
• Get the room(s) ready for a big-boy Wesley and new baby
• Lesson plan better and more diligently for French class (only 8 more classes)
• De-clutter house - majorly!
• Have a successful birth in June (hopefully natural like last time)
• Try better to breastfeed (and ask for help!!)
• Eat a lot in the hospital (it's free and I don't have to cook it)
• Join a post-partum group
• Ask for help after baby is born
• Relax and enjoy the 2 babies, don't stress about the house/laundry/dinner
• Don't think about sleep, I can sleep when I'm 80 -  I can never get these moments back again.

With a list like this, no wonder I'm always stressed out! Do I ask always put too much on my plate? My husband seems to think so.

Looking back on 2011

It was a blur. Our first full year with our Wesley, so many firsts, so many new adventures... where do I begin.

I knew I needed to start the year off right. As a new stay-at-home mom, January was my nemesis -- no more holidays, no more walks outside, what would I do? So I signed Wesley up for storytime at the library, music classes, and swim class and I signed myself up for Bootcamp 4 nights a week. That's how we spent pretty much the first 6 months of the year: getting out, meeting new people, and staying busy through the cold months.

Swim Class 6 months

In fact, we got out so much this year, I'm tired just thinking about it ... the Zoo, Museums, Pumpkin Patches, Parades, and Petting Zoos, a Revolutionary War reenactment, and Fairs of all Kind - both State and County, the Arboretum, pools, lakes, and splash pads; we made history changing our cloth diapers, and got to meet new babies and make new friends. It was a BUSY year!

We traveled a little bit.  In April, we went to Nashville to visit Matt's family. It was Wesley's first plane ride at 9 months, and our first time traveling with precious cargo. After agreeing that the trip was a cinch, we went to Florida with my family in May. For a long weekend, I went to Madison in February with my mom and we participated in the protest at the state capitol, and then we all went back to Madison in August to visit our good friends.

Birthday friends

In March, I started freelancing for my old company and Wesley got a new friend -- his babysitter! He loved her, we still love her, and it was great for me to work again at home knowing that Wesley was being taken care of just downstairs. She's truly part of the family now. Unfortunately, I asked for a Sabbatical for November & December and they took that to mean I was no longer working for them ... so alas, I am a full-time stay-at-home mom once again.

With babysitter Sam

But I did manage to pick up a new gig ... teaching French! I started this in September and realized 2 things: 1) I am not meant to be a teacher (although it seems the kids love me - no parent complaints and I got gifts for Christmas (not common)) and 2) after I pay the babysitter to watch Wesley, I make $0 (In fact, it's more like $-20). But it's something totally new, and I welcomed the experience. Only 8 more classes to go for 2012...

Playing in the yard

Finally, our biggest surprise of the year was when we found out we were pregnant in September. With a baby due in June 2012, this meant that our 2 kids would be 22-1/2 months apart... who said we were sane? I spent the rest of 2011 with morning sickness.

As for the two of us -- it's great to have a babysitter (both my mom and a real one) so we could ... make beer, eat fabulus food at The Girl & the Goat, and have 2 amazing Gastronomique Dinners with friends (wait, Wesley had to come to one of them). Matt ran his first 1/2 marathon in April, and I lost all my baby weight and dyed my hair blond (for a while).

New fence

We also did more home renovation - although now we're mostly hiring people to finish up the house. In 2011 we: put in hardwood in the family room and new hardwood in 2 of the bedrooms, we expanded our master bedroom closet and got new interiors, we also got a new fence, new windows and painted the exterior of the house.

New closet

 Like I said, it was a busy, busy, year.

Pooped