TRAVELS and VISITORS:
In July, Ed and I attended a beautiful wedding in Ottawa while Jim and Joanne took care of the girls in Door County. After the wedding, we drove out to Montreal for 3 days and then made the drive out to Door County to get the girls and attend the Lampson Family Reunion at Jim and Joanne's house. We had a fantastic time at the wedding, and some supurb meals in Montreal, but my pregnancy complications made travel pretty tiring. It was wonderful to get away for a romantic trip, just the two of us, before the baby comes though. The girls had a great time with their grandparents, even though we know they were a lot of work; and it was lovely to see the whole family together--especially all 8 children!
In August, Ed went up to Bent's Camp in northern Wisconsin with his friends, Kian, Eddie and Hyong, for their annual guys trip. They had a great time fishing and doing "guy stuff" at the resort in the woods and became local ledgends at the bar. Ed caught a muskee and he and Kian were even chased by a bear, making the trip quite memorable! While he was gone, my dad came out to visit and help me with the girls. He really was a God-send, playing and having fun with the girls, helping prepare meals, cleaning up and really letting me get some rest. He also helped me get some organizational and handy-man projects done around the house. I'm so thankful for his help.
At the end of August, Mona and Joe came out to visit on their way to South Dakota. We had a great visit and Matilda and Evelyn had a fantastic time giving high-fives, twirling with uncle Joe, playing dress-up and playing with the magnetic paper doll Mona brought along. It was a short, but really nice visit.
Ed was invited to the Big Ten media day luncheon in down town Chicago this year, so we all went down town together and while he was rubbing elbows with boosters and coaches, I took the girls to their first trip to the Shedd Aquarium! It was my first visit too! They really enjoyed watching the 4D Dora movie and were enthralled with the dolphins, whales and penguins. We're looking forward to taking them back in the winter when it's not so crowded so they won't have to stay in their stroller the whole time and can really get a look at all the exhibits.
Ed and I went to the Wisconsin season-opener vs. UNLV. The seats are amazing up in a luxury box with private restrooms, temperature control and wait staff. We had a great time and I'm looking forward to the next game. Uncle Eric came out for the Oregon State game and the girls were absolutely delighted to see him. Evelyn is particularly enamoured and asks about him frequently.
MATILDA:
Matilda turned 3 this summer. She had her 3 year well-child check up in August and did a spectacular job. She was very polite, friendly and not scared in the least. She let the doctor check everything he needed the check and came out with a clean bill of health. She's 35 pounds and at least 38 3/4 inches tall (she kept ducking whenever the nurse brought the level down to her head). She is still very tall and very lean for her age. She and Evelyn are within 1 pound of eachother! She also recently had her first dental check up. She was exceptionally cooperative at the dentist as well and recieved tons of compliments on both her behavior and her healthy teeth!
Matilda's preschool started on September 12. She's in the 2-3 year old class twice a week and having a great time learning about the calendar and weather and letters and numbers and seasons and making new friends. Evelyn will join her in January.
Matilda has also started Sunday school at church and joined the Little Cherubs Choir. She's coming along nicely learning the new songs for church choir and she sits and behaves for 1/2 the church service now before being released to Sunday school which she enjoys so much she asks to go every day!
She is getting pickier about her foods and more eloquent in her attempts at persuasion. She is obsessed with the Toy Story movies and princesses and loves to "help" in the kitchen and around the house. She is day-time potty trained and learning to be more independant with dressing and undressing. She is getting really excited about the new baby and wants to check on the baby in my tummy daily. She spends most of her time engrossed in books and imaginative play with small dolls. She's becoming more and more social by the day and wants to talk to every other child she sees. And she's a sweet and wonderful big sister.
EVELYN:
Evelyn will be 2 in just over a month, but, looking at her, you'd think she was 2 1/2 already! She is tall and strong and fearless. She has a very friendly, engaging and outgoing personality. She's learning tons of new words every day--especially animal names. We're also working on colors and number recognition and she likes to sing songs with Matilda.
She absolutely adores babies. Pictures of babies, videos of babies, baby dolls, human babies... she squeals and gets all excited and just can't get enough! I don't think she's old enough to really understand that we are going to have a new baby soon, but I think she's going to be totally psyched when that new baby comes home to stay!
Evelyn isn't old enough to be in any organized activities yet, but she will join Matilda in preschool in January. Until then, she's content to have story time with Mommy, work on her flash cards for new words, sing songs, play with her dolls, run in circles and climb everything in sight.
This month we started cloth diapering her because the disposable diapers were giving her terrible rashes. She seems to feel much better now and the diapers are awfully cute. The new baby will wear cloth as well.
NEW BABY:
The new baby is growing well. At our 19 week gender scan we learned that she is a she, her organs and parts are all developing normally and she was in the 50th percentile for size. I'm still having complications with my gallbladder and not being able to gain any weight, so I've had to see the OB nearly every week (sometimes more than once a week) since 6 weeks along. At 27 weeks 3 days (August 15) we had another ultrasound to check her growth and she was up to the 70th percentile in growth! At 31 weeks, 3 days (September 12) I had to visit the high-risk doctors to talk about the weight problems, gallbladder issues and the cholestatis I developed with Evelyn. We had another ultrasound and she was up to the 78th percentile weighing in at 4 pounds 13 ounces! She is growing and developing beautifully. I go in to the doctor frequently to do a test to monitor her movements and heartbeat to make certain she's not stressed, as well as blood tests to keep an eye on my gallbladder and look out for cholestasis. We expect her to put on 1/2 pound or more per week until delivery. There will be at least one more ultrasound to check on her size, fluid levels and placenta function. I'm still pretty sore and having a really hard time eating and, in general, feeling terrible, anti-social and rather crabby... but I'm also so grateful that she is growing and developing appropriately and I'm getting really excited to meet her!
We're almost ready, we need to assemble the crib, buy a box of wipes for the hospital, pack the hospital bag and put all the carseats in the car. She'll be here in 44 days or less!
So, that is what everyone has been up to around here!
