Grandma and Grandpa Walker's Visit--Part I

My parents planned a trip to come down the last week of March. Well, they were part of all the Alaska airlines mess, so their flight that was supposed to arrive Saturday afternoon didn't get in until Sunday morning! I felt so bad for the because they had spent 15 hours at SeaTac airport and then flew all night. Needless to say, we didn't do much on Sunday! Everyone rested and we just spent time relaxing!

Monday morning we woke up ready for some adventure! We decided to head out to the zoo that morning because the forecast called for rain the next couple of days. Even though we had just gone the week before I decided to take advantage of our membership and the good weather!

Ethan loved using his zoo key again and grandma was the perfect helper!

Doing it all by himself!
Ethan was fascinated by the coin funnel and grandpa just happened to have a pocket full of change!

We made a stop by the petting zoo to see the goats. I thought it was so funny how he just crouched down and got on their level! He loves animals!

Ethan loved to walk around holding his grandma and grandpa's hand. Here he's saying, "C'mon grandma!!! There's more to see!"
That's better...one on each side!

Tristan was working in Lafayette in the radio room that week, so we drove over on Monday night to meet him for dinner and to visit. We got there a little early, so we spent some time hanging out in the parking lot and exploring.

We joked that my dad was going to be walking lopsided once he returned home since he had to lean to the side to hold his hand all the time!
On Tuesday we went by the library to return and check out some books. We normally do it on Mondays during story time, but Ethan had had a cold that wouldn't go away and I was trying to keep him and his germs away from other little kids! Afterwards, we stopped by a nearby park for some playtime.

The first of many slide encounters!

A stop by to visit the dog

So many slides, so little time!
Taking on the twirly slide

Grandpa decided to be a trooper and take Ethan down the slide that was too big for him to do on his own!

That night grandpa decided to introduce Ethan to one of his favorites--popsicles!
Look at that popsicle grin!

I had a bunch of errands to run on Wednesday to get ready for a bachelorette party I was hosting the next day, so we decided to stop by the mall play area for some fun.

Grandma helping Ethan out on yet another slide!

Ethan went down this slide over and over and over again. Whoever invented mall play areas was a genius!
Grandpa helped Ethan learn some new "tricks" on the slide...
Lots of fun and their visit was only half over!

We stayed busy in March with things around the apartment, church responsibilities and, of course, finding time to meet up with friends for fun adventures! Ethan loves to play with his cars on his window sill and some mornings in March were cool enough that we opened our window to let the cool air into the apartment. Apparently, on this morning I didn't move stuff out of the way fast enough for him, so he decided to take matters into his own hands!

At the beginning of March we met some friends to go to the zoo. We actually ended up getting a membership, so many more trip to the zoo are in our future, I'm sure! The first stop was the tiger enclosure. I thought it was so cute how they were cuddling!

We made a stop by the aquariums to see, fish, turtles, sting rays, snakes and spiders. Here are the two buddies checking out some fish!
As you can see, he loves the aquariums!

They were both very interested in the leaves floating in the moat at the monkey enclosure!

I truly think the highlight for Ethan this day was running up and down the little hill on a bridge. No animals in sight, just a hill! We managed to make it out alive, even though I had visions of skinned knees and foreheads. He and Drew just kept running up and down, up and down. The things that entertain toddlers!
Last week, we went to Miss Heather's strawberry patch with a group of friends. It's about a 30 minute drive and I thought Ethan would like being outside since he's an outdoors junkie. It turned out to be a little bit of a warmer, humid morning, so we were definitely feeling it while we were out there picking berries!

At the beginning (before he was melting) he was very interested in what all these people were doing. You are allowed to eat while you pick, which is a nice perk! He kept picking one, taking a bite and throwing the rest on the ground. He did it over and over again, so I know it wasn't that he didn't like the flavor--silly boy!

Ethan getting in on the action. Looks like he found a good one!

By the end of the picking he was worn out and hot! Here he is taking a sit-down break with his juice. Poor guy! Sweat was dripping down his cheeks! I tried to go as fast as I could, but it takes a while to pick a half-flat!
After the strawberry picking, we headed over to their play area for some fun. They had lots of playground type toys and these little tractors that my car and truck lover loved to push around. I just wished he would stay in the shade with me for just a minute, but he insisted on playing more!

They had a bunch of the ride-on tractors. He had fun just sitting on them since he couldn't reach the pedals and it was a little too heavy for me to push! Look at that pink face!! I promise I put sunblock on and he didn't get a sunburn...he just gets super flushed when he's hot!

He liked watching the kids on the big trampoline, but when I tried putting him up on it, he wasn't having it! Maybe by pumpkin time!
This was Ethan on the way home from the strawberry patch...wiped out!
Unfortunately, he slept just long enough that he didn't go back down for a nap once we returned home...so our day was very, very long! But the strawberries were so worth it!! Once again, another fun day with friends!

St. Patrick's Day Parade

I've always heard about the St. Patrick's Day parades down here, and I love parades. So this year we decided to take Ethan to his first parade. I was a little worried that he wouldn't like them, but overall he had a great time. It was a beautiful day and we met Jill, Drew and her parents to take in the fun! They found a great spot that was under the shade of a tree, so we had protection from the sun, plus we stayed a little cooler.

Ethan wearing some of his loot

Jill and Drew
Well, at least they are in the same frame...it's nearly IMPOSSIBLE to get two toddlers to look at the camera at the same time!

Tristan trying to catch some loot from the floats

I think this is the time I got hit in the face with beads, since I was holding the camera and not getting ready for the catch!
Ethan with Jill...He loves Jill. She is his nursery teacher at church, so he spends 2 hours every Sunday with her, not to mention that we see each other a lot on our play dates. He typically warms up to men more than women, but Jill is a rare exception!

Jill's mom and dad were nice enough to let us use one of their bags for all of our loot...you can tell we aren't from here because we came a little unprepared for all of the prizes!

Digging in his bag of catches for something fun

A rare shot of me and Ethan (I'm working on getting more!!)
By the end of the parade, Ethan found a permanent roost on dad's shoulders. He's been into wearing sunglasses lately, but somehow always manages to put them on upside down!
It was a great day and we ended it with a last minute BBQ at the Britt's. I'm glad that Ethan loves parades as much as I do!!

Back in the Saddle

Well, January and February were kind of a blur for me. I found out in early January that I was pregnant and from pretty much day one was super sick. So entertainment came cheap around here! We were still busy, so hang in there as there are a lot of pictures in this post!

We spent a lot of mornings taking it easy, as opposed to the typical early wake-up and errand running before lunch...

Enjoying his banana like a big boy!

Ethan entertained himself the best he could while I kept it low key around the apartment...here he was helping me cook in the kitchen. See how neatly he lined the pans up for me???

The days that Tristan was home were always a lot easier for me and more fun for Ethan, I'm sure! One day Tristan made up some homemade play-doh and let Ethan have at it. He actually had a great time playing with it...

but didn't really care for the way it tasted!
Around this time he started making this cheesy grin...What a goofball!

On days when Tristan wasn't around, we were very low key! We found quiet, entertaining things to do...

We didn't always get dressed first thing in the morning...
We watched a few extra DVDs

Basically, we just survived!

This describes how Ethan and I both felt when Tristan arrived home from work!! He loves his daddy!!!

He went through this phase where he wanted to hang everything around his neck...toddlers are so random. This day we were coloring on some of the packaging that came in a box that was shipped to us.

A lot of days when Tristan was home he would take Ethan out to play at the playground at our apartments when I wasn't up to doing much. Even though it was a little chilly, they still had a blast!

Out riding his truck with dad

Getting ready to take on the slide!
Taking a peek...it's kind of far down!!!

We still made it out for occasional playdates with friends here and there. This day we went to a bounce house that's about 5 minutes from my house. Ethan has never LOVED bounce houses, but he will usually attempt some things and run around and play...well, this day was a huge exception. Pretty much the instant we got there he would not let me put him down, and if I did he cried and chased after me. All he wanted to do was sit and watch everyone play...I found out a few weeks later he had bronchitis and an ear infection, so I'm thinking that might have been part of the problem! Poor Ethan being forced to play with friends..... ;)
I don't know what he had for breakfast this day, but he obviously loved it!!!
I'm so glad that Ethan is so easy going and easy to entertain...I don't know what I would have done during those really sick days if he wasn't. And more importantly, I'm so grateful for a husband who loves spending time with his son so I could have rest when I needed it! I'm sure things are going to be MUCH busier come the end of September!!!

No Such Thing As a Good Excuse???

So, I know that I'm behind in updating our blog....again. But this time I think I have a really good excuse:

I have been sick as a dog! That's right, we are expecting baby #2 in the Bernard family! We are very excited, especially since I'm through the sick phase. I am due September 23 or so, which puts me at 11 weeks right now! Almost through the 1st trimester, thank goodness! Ethan will have just turned 2 years old, so hopefully they will be close as they grow up and be good buddies!

I went in for my first sonogram a couple of weeks ago, and they found a small area they were concerned about called a subchorionic bleed (basically a clot), so I had to go back in today to check it again. Usually it bleeds out or your body reabsorbs it. Today the sonogram showed that it had decreased in size, which means my body is reabsorbing it, which is ideal. The doctor is no longer concerned and I won't go back for another month, at which time I will have a normal check up.

I was very sick from the very beginning and have basically been trying to just survive the days. Now that I am feeling better, I am able to eat better and accomplish more. So I guess I won't have a good excuse if I don't update the blog soon! We are so excited to meet our new little one!