It's A........

Girl!

Photos by Casey Cooper Photography

Easter

Easter Egg Hunt at the Park

Easter Morning

Indoor Egg Hunt After Dinner at Nonna and Papa's 

Spring Pictures

Updates on Baby Swafford

We are 22 weeks away from meeting the baby currently known as Bubbles! Brennan has stuck with his name choice, and his prediction that he is having a brother. I'm greatly looking forward to giving the baby a formal name, and knowing if it is a boy or girl. We had an ultrasound Thursday, but this little stinker had it's legs crossed and was sitting on it's bottom so there was no way to tell the gender! I'm very thankful that everything looked great with the baby, but I was definitely a little disappointed. I've actually had an ultrasound at every visit and during every other one the baby has been moving all over the place. This time it was sound asleep I think. The morning after, I began to feel it moving for the first time and it was very active! I already plan to enjoy some sugar and caffeine before our appointment on April 18th, just to make sure.

I have been thinking pink for awhile now, and did break down and buy a few pink things at a sale this weekend. Admittedly, we are much more prepared for a boy though. We have a boy name, a boy blue room, and all of Brennan's clothes and such. I can truly say either will be just fine. I do feel the need to have a girl name before we find out, and that is not coming easily. It needs to be the right combination of somewhat traditional/older but a little bit unusual. I don't want anything so different that no one knows what it is, but I also don't want a name you hear everyday. Ah, it's such a huge decision to give someone their name for life. Any suggestions? I would definitely love to hear new ideas.

You will notice, there are no pictures included in this post. I'm not real into maternity photos at the moment. Just know that I am noticeably pregnant. I already feel huge, although I'm still mostly wearing my normal clothes. While most of it is out front again, I can tell I have gained more all over than I did with Brennan. I am feeling great, especially if I exercise a little each day. I was beginning to think this baby was going to be bald, but the heartburn has arrived. Other than that, I can't say I'm having many discomforts. I'm very thankful! I'm currently trying to knock off my to do list so that when warm weather finally arrives I can enjoy time with Brennan outside, and when the hot summer accompanies the huge months of pregnancy you will find me in the pool!

Updates on the B

Brennan is growing and changing by the moment I think. He no longer wants to be called B, but Brennan. He continues to burst with personality. He is a very outgoing little boy, and just loves life in general. A few weeks ago he had his spring program at preschool. He had told me for several days that he was going to sing loud for us. When he got on stage, he was front and center with a huge smile on his face. He sang and danced to each of his songs, sometimes a little fast but always with full gusto. As his mom and a teacher, this says to me he pays attention! That isn't always the case at home, so I was very proud to see him perform so well.

We are sometimes Mom and Dad now, instead of Mommy and Daddy. He has become my protector. He often tells me to "stand back" or "wait right there" when he hears a noise that he is unsure of. Even protectors still need many cuddles though. He wants to have snuggle time a lot. I'm often asked to watch an episode of Mickey with him or sit beside him so he can hold my ear.

He can come up with the funniest things to say.
One night he hit his funny bone. He grabbed his elbow and said,"Ouch I need some Salonpas!" I've heard the Salonpas commercial I'm sure, but I've never really paid attention to it. Apparently he has!

One day we were eating lunch out. He had found a toy cell phone in his bag and was pretending to call our aunt and uncle. The waiter came by and asked if we needed anything. Brennan politely put his finger up to his lips to ask the waiter to be quiet while he took his call! The waiter said," Oh I'm sorry I didn't realize he was on the phone", and walked away.

One night he asked Mike to put bubbles in his bath. When he was pleased with how many bubbles there were he said, "That's marvelous!"

I recently finished painting his new big boy room. The first time he saw it he exclaimed, "Wow this is amazing!"

A few days ago he opened the refrigerator and asked if we still had cupcakes. When I replied that we did he said, "Ah, that's music to my ears!"

He is absolutely loving preschool two mornings a week. He can't wait to go each time to play with the "friends and children" there. He is also learning so much! He is doing great with counting and recognizing certain letters and shapes. He has made good progress on potty training as well, although we still aren't quite there yet. Every day is an adventure that he welcomes with great enthusiasm. He brings so much joy to our lives!

PRESCHOOL PROGRAM FUN!

Wells becoming "Wells the great!"

Brennan and his "friend/cousin" Maeleigh

The large train track he started on his own. It went from the living room through the dining room.

Indoor Easter egg hunting practice on a cold, rainy day.

Happy Birthday Maeleigh!

Happy Birthday Nonna!

A rare cousin moment.....close to each other and quiet. 

Happy Valentine's Day!

We have had a lot of fun celebrating the big V! Yesterday, Brennan and I went to a Valentine play date party. Out of 15 children there were 3 boys. Brennan had a few admirers that I'm not sure he knew quite how to handle! He really stuck with the boys.  He had a blast, and so did I. The kids were all so good that we had a good bit of mommy time, too. There were precious Valentine decorations, and cute Valentine treats for everyone.

Thanks Alyson for the pictures!                                                     

Today, he was so excited for his second Valentine party at school.  We did the glow stick Valentines from Pinterest. They were super easy and inexpensive.

kommunicated.com/2012/01/glow-stick-valentines/

For his teachers, we did a pot of pink tulips for each one. I find these at Walmart each year and dress them up a little.

He had a great time eating the icing off of the cupcakes. 

He hasn't felt too well this afternoon, so we had a quiet evening at home with pizza and chocolate filled strawberries. It's been a great start to a fun weekend. 

Let's Make This Completely Official....

We're expecting a baby in August!

I know this isn't new news to everyone, but I have to finally get the details blogged. This baby is a long awaited answered prayer. We found out December 16th. We decided to let our parents and siblings in on the secret on Christmas day. Mike made a gift certificate good for a grandchild in August 2013. It took each mom a minute to get it, but I think they were pretty excited.

After a good 6 week and 8 week appointment we were ready to share. It has taken awhile to get to everyone, but it's now Facebook official so all the world knows, right. 

The official date is August 25th. I'm almost 11 weeks. Brennan and the baby will be a little over 3 1/2 years apart. He says he is having a brother and HER name will be Bubbles. Hmmm. So far this pregnancy has been nothing like my previous. I was terribly sick with Brennan, and really haven't been sick this time. I basically ate cheese and bread before, this time I want to eat everything in sight. On cheese and bread, Brennan weighed 8 lbs. 11 ozs. and I still had plenty to loose. Yes, I'm worried! The one thing that has reigned is exhaustion. Exercise has helped, but I still sleep as much as Brennan most days. I've been very motivated to get some projects done around the house. I hope that motivation holds out until I have the energy to do them.  I also have an aversion to smells that I usually love, like some candles and Bath and Body fragrances. I think I've started to really show this week. I can still cover it, but it's getting harder. This is probably early for some people but I actually showed a little sooner with Brennan. We have name ideas but nothing definite, and of course thanks to Pinterest I have plenty of room ideas. Yep, I've been loving those secret boards ;). 

A Great Day For A Snow Day

We thoroughly enjoyed our quick little snow day! Our first trip out was soon after the grass became covered. It was just a quick trip since it was snowing pretty hard, and I was trying to wait for Mike to be in on all the fun. Brennan loved making footprints!

He spent the next hour looking out windows waiting to go back out and throw snowballs.

During the second trip out he thought he needed to get his truck and check on things. The truck was no match for the snow. He had to do most of his inspection on foot. He spent a lot of his time making snowballs.

We took a little break and made snow cream. We mixed snow, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla (Paula Deen's recipe). It was very yummy! While we were in the sun popped out, after how many days of absence, and it was amazing how fast the trees cleared and snow began to melt. We decided to postpone nap time a little and play one more time. This time Brennan took his dump truck out to work. It didn't run quite like he hoped, but it was a lot of fun in the slushy part.

Once he was completely soaked, and Wells had caught all the snowballs he could handle, we called it a day. He went to sleep very sad because the snow was going away, but already planning what he will do next time it snows. I love that snow days are so special in the South!