Carter Oliver Bartlett - born June 25, 2011

In my last post I promised to keep you posted... but lets just say that things got busy!

On Saturday morning, June 25, our world as we knew it began to change.  I woke to my water breaking at 5:00am.  I was so excited that things were starting to take place and that Carter would soon be in our arms. 

Cory called my mom around 5:30am and had her come over and stay with the kids. We drove to the hospital and checked in around 6:00am. My contractions were very light and not consistent. I knew we were going to have a long day ahead of us. By noon the nurse started me on pitocin which really sped thing up. My contractions went from every 12 minutes up to every 3 minutes almost instantly. By 3:00pm they ordered the epidural. The anesthesiologist gave me the local and when capping the needle before disposing he managed to poke himself in the finger. The needle actually poked out of the cap sideways and got him! I felt bad, but even more so, nervous! He still had to put in the epidural. I turned to him and apologized in a light hearted way hoping he wouldn't be upset about poking himself with the needle and continue to do a great job. The epidural went in a little to the right. I could feel the poking and pinching much more than I had with my past two epidurals. Shortly after the epidural was in place my entire right side went numb, but my left side still very much had feeling. So... they increased the meds and I was pretty much numb all over. Nice, but not so nice...

By 7:00pm I knew things were getting close. I was really ready for this part to be over. I needed to hold baby Carter and get unhooked from all of these machines. By 8:00pm things were about to start, however, two other women decided they needed to have their babies first. So... I waited... finally it was our turn... and baby Carter entered the world at 9:19pm on Saturday, June 25th, 2011. He weighed 7 lbs 15 oz and was 20 inches long. He entered the world sideways with his armed wrapped up around his face. But all in all... he was (and is) absolutely perfect! He has a full head of hair, but otherwise looks very much like Ethan as a newborn.

Mariah, Ethan, and Carter

Proud Daddy Cory with Carter

Our new little blessing!

Big brother Ethan holding Carter

Mommy and Carter

Carter all bundled and ready to go home 

Carter taking a peak at the world around him 

LOVE

Carter is sleeping and eating very well.  It is so nice to finally be home and begin our lives together as a family of five.  Thank you for all of the thoughts, prayers, and well wishes.  We love the messages from everyone.  Thanks for being a part of our beautiful experience.

Love,

Cory, Kelly, Mariah, Ethan, and Carter

Dear Carter...

This is a motivation post written to my dear sweet little Carter that needs to come out NOW!  Mommy is in pain and is having a hard time walking, getting in and out of bed, getting in to my van, and just plain moving around in general... it even hurts to lift up the milk gallon.  Sweet little Carter.... you have wedged yourself in to a position that is causing my feet to swell and hurt, my hips to no longer work in a rotating motion which is needed for walking, and randomly I am getting shooting pains down my legs.  I believe they call that sciatic nerve pain.  Yes, I am in pain.  I am complaining.  I am asking you nicely to come out.  Please.  On your own before the induction day would be greatly appreciated.  Mommy needs to hold and snuggle you now.  I would also like greatly to be able to walk and possibly even bend over again. 

Love Always,

Mom

38.1 Weeks

Today baby and I are 38.1 weeks.  We have 8 days left until eviction day!  I will arrive at the hospital around 5:30am on Thursday June 30th and they will start my induction.  My doctor figured the 30th would be a good date since my original due date was June 24th and my second due date was July 5th.  We'll just split it down the middle and ask nicely for baby to come out on June 30th - plus that is my doctor's on call delivery day. 

Baby Carter and I had our 38 week check up yesterday.  I am now measuring at 2+ cm dilated and 85% effaced.  That is just a bit more progress than last week's status.  I was told, again, that it could be any day now because my body is progressing.  So... every day I wake up and Cory asks me how I'm feeling and I say fine (under my breath) and he chuckles and says... most people would be happy to say they are feeling fine.  Yes, well, I want to feel like I am in labor - and be in labor...  ;-) 

My blood pressure was at a beautiful 116/74 yesterday and some how I have managed to lose 1 pound.  This puts me at a 27.6 lb gain during this pregnancy.  Way different than my 50 lb gain with Ethan!  

This past weekend we went to my cousin's wedding on Saturday night.  I was exhausted, but Cory and I managed to get dressed up and get out and enjoy ourselves for a while.  It was a very lovely dinner and reception. 

Here is a picture from 37.5 weeks.

37 Weeks

We made it to 37 weeks!  Baby Carter is now considered full term and can make his appearance at any time!  Over the past two weeks I had been worried about making it to this point.  My body has never progressed ahead of time like this and I feared that Carter might come too early and not be able to go home with us right away.  However, I can let go of those fears now.  37 weeks is a huge milestone.  You can come out any time now Carter.  We are ready and waiting for you! 

Well... Okay... Now Carter has to wait a couple days. I wrote this before I got the news that my Grandpa Kolbow passed away. He was 98 years old and lived an amazing life. He was a wonderful man and will be very much missed. His funeral is on Friday. So... It would be nice if Carter would wait until this weekend to enter in to the world.

36.2 Weeks

Well this has been an exciting week.  Last Thursday I had my 35.2 week check up where the doctor checked my cervix to see if my body was progressing towards labor.  My cervix was soft and I was possibly a small centimeter dilated.  Well after that appointment I started having lower back pain, upper leg pain, and random contractions until late Friday night.  My guess was braxton hicks because they weren't regular contractions and eventually stopped. 

Today at my 36.2 week check up I learned that those contractions were real!  I am now 1-2 centimeters dilated and 80% effaced.  This has never happened for me in the past.  Normally I don't start to dilate until the actual birthing day of the baby.  This is pretty exciting!  Could be tomorrow... could be 3 weeks from now.  No way to really know.  Just excited that things are progressing. 

At my 37 week appointment we will schedule my induction for June 30th.  She mentioned that this probably won't be necessary though... :-)  Looks like baby Carter will be here soon!  I am not worried about the early delivery because my original due date was June 24th which would make me 37.6 weeks right now and baby is considered full term around 37 weeks.  Plus... baby is measuring big. 

Here is a picture from 36 weeks

35.2 Weeks - Pictures

I didn't have a picture to post for 35 weeks so I had Cory take a couple pictures this morning before my check up with my doctor.  All is looking well according to the doctor.  We are talking about a possible induction date of June 30th.  My doctor will be on call that day for deliveries.  Otherwise if I wait until the 4th of July weekend I may end up with whatever doctor happens to be on call.  We'll make a decision over the next couple weeks.  :-)

35.2 weeks - looking in to the sun

 ...and with the sun to my back...

 ...and Ethan and the dogs getting in on the picture action...

Crazy little man!  xoxo

35 Weeks - just 35 days to go!

I am so ready, so so so ready to have this baby.  SO ready!  I have 35 days left.  That may not sound like a lot of days; however, when I think about tossing and turning all night long for the next 35 nights... well that sounds like a lot.  When I think about the weight of my body on my poor little ankles... that sounds like a lot. I am so ready...

I had terrible cramping pains on my left side for about 6 hours on Sunday evening.  They would come and go every 10 - 12 minutes and then eventually stopped.  Then Sunday morning when I woke up and started walking around the house I would have to stop every couple steps because baby was pinching my nerves and causing shooting pains down my legs.  Fortunately that all went away for now. 

Ahh... 5 more weeks... I can do this.  Just 35 more days... baby Carter better not decide to come late! 

34.4 Weeks and Cory's Surgery

I didn't get to post right at 34 weeks because I was a little busy that day... That happened to be the day that Cory had a much needed surgery to hopefully correct the back issues he's been having.  About 2 years ago Cory started having terrible pains in his back that would go down his right leg and make his foot numb.  The doctors did lots of tests and decided it was L5 and S1 that were causing the issues.  The disks were leaking and creating hard substance that was pinching the nerves and causing a lot of pain.  They sent him for a cortisone shot and lots of physical therapy.  That seemed to do the trick up until about 3 weeks ago.  Cory started having bad pains again.  This time things were worse.  He ended up in the ER on the opening night of Mariah's play for school.  They gave him an IV of 3 different pain meds and sent him home with instructions to follow up with his doctor on Monday.  He did just that and within days surgery was scheduled for a diskectomy.  Not only was there an issue between L5 and S1 but there was also a bigger issue between L4 and L5.  Things were really pinching and the doctor was afraid of permanent numbness in Cory's right leg and foot.  The surgery took place on Tuesday, May 24 at Columbia St Mary's in Milwaukee.  Dr Block performed the surgery and did an excellent job.  They removed a bunch of the extra bone material that leaked out of the bones and had been compressing the nerves.  The doctor said it was a lot worse than he thought it was going to be and he was really happy Cory didn't wait to have the surgery.  We are hoping that full feeling will eventually come back in Cory's foot.  So far Cory is feeling great.  He is stiff, moves slowly and cautiously, has a weight lifting restriction of 20 lbs for the next three months, and basically has to take it easy for the next couple weeks, but he is respecting that and very happy that he went through with the surgery.  He has been feeling tingling in his right foot which is a great sign that feeling is coming back.  Next Thursday he gets the staples taken out and a better update on how he is progressing. 

A funny story from surgery day:

I was sitting in the patient room by myself during Cory's surgery.  I was anxiously waiting to hear how things were going.  It had been 2 hours since they took Cory in to surgery and they said it would only take 1-2 hours.  I was getting antsy, but trying to stay calm.  Surgery is scary!  As I was sitting there the loud speaker went off in the hospital announcing Code Red First Floor Main Building.  This repeated a couple times so I quickly googled Code Red in hospitals and came up with a bomb threat?!  Ummm really?  Here I am 34 weeks pregnant on the 4th floor of the main building, my husband is in surgery and there is a Code Red which looks to be a bomb threat?!  I quickly text my friend Lindsay, gave her the details, and she called me within seconds saying Code Red is a fire alarm.  By then the nurse had also come to the door and closed me in the room saying there was a fire drill of some sort going on.  I started to calm down a little bit, but was still nervous about a potential fire a couple floors below me.  Then about 10 minutes later over the loud speaker I hear Code Blue Main Building.  Wow... really?!  More codes?!  I know what this one means... it means someone is having cardiac arrest and my husband still isn't out of surgery and I have no idea what is going on.  Luckily the floor that Code Blue was taking place on was a different floor than where I believed Cory to be at while in surgery.  I sat there and continued to try to calm my nerves and not force myself in to early labor out of panic.  Finally about 15 minutes later Dr Block came in and told me that Cory's surgery went wonderfully.  Phew!  Relief finally started to settle in....

Now for baby and my update.  We are doing really well.  Baby Carter is a natural acrobat and loves to move all around making my belly look like an ocean on a rough day.  It is fun to watch, but tends to get a bit uncomfortable at times.  Ethan keeps asking me if baby Carter is going to jump out of my belly soon.  He is getting anxious.  Well, we are all getting anxious, but we are also hoping he waits until closer to his due date.  I would love for Cory to be further along in his recovery.  As for my swelling... it's gone down!  My blood pressure is good, weight gain is good, I am feeling good.  Next week I start my weekly appointments.  We are getting down to the end.  Just 39 days to go until due date!!  :-)

Here is a picture from this morning at 34.4 weeks.  Please ignore my wet hair.  I managed to start the blow dryer on fire yesterday morning and almost set the bathroom wall on fire.  I desperately need to get to the store to buy a new blow dryer.  That... is another story though. 

33 Weeks

Today is Tuesday, May 17, 2011.  It is 45 degrees out right now with a high of 56 expected for the day.  It is the middle of May... the middle of May and still cold and windy.  That means that we've been in our house now unable to enjoy beautiful weather outside for over 6 months.  6 months of being cooped up in the house unable to soak up the sunshine, eat dinner outside, play on the playground, swim in the pool... Sure we've had a handful of "teaser" days within the past couple months.  A handful of days where we think that spring and summer are nearing, but then they leave.  Those days are quickly swept away by 60 mile an hour winds due to 20+ degree drops in temperatures over night. 

For someone who suffers from seasonal depression and just simply can't stand the cold weather... this is terrible.  I keep hoping that eventually summer will come along and maybe I can play with the kids outside instead of in the garage or basement.  I want to take the kids swimming in our pool after work and enjoy the sunshine.  I want to smell sun tan lotion and hide under umbrellas to catch a bit of shade to cool off.  We opened our pool on May 1st - same as we did last year - however this year we haven't gone in it yet... even though we have a heater.  Not that the heater would work right now because every time we try to fill up our pool the water leaks right back out.... because.... we have a small hole in the bottom of the liner.  So, maybe some day when it's warm enough and the water warms up a bit someone can fix the hole in our pool and we can fill it to the top, heat it up, and finally enjoy it.  However... there is a good chance that I will be having a baby by that time and will be unable to go in the pool for a while.  But, at least Mariah and Ethan will be able to enjoy it while Carter and I sit along the edge and watch them play. 

Did you know that it's going to be sunny and in the 80's all week long in Sarasota, FL?!  Did you know that the people that live there are some of the luckiest people on earth?! 

Well, enough about my complaints and the things that are ailing me.  Time to return to my cold weather WI post so I can update all of you on how I am feeling and how baby Carter and I are doing.  We went to the doctor today for our 33 week check up.  Baby is doing great.  My blood pressure is back down to 114/76.   I've gained 1 pound in the past two weeks, and my doctor put me on Zoloft to help with my emotions.  Supposedly this will not hurt the baby at all; however, it is best to wean myself off of the meds while breastfeeding so that the baby can be weaned off also.  That alone is enough to scare the crap out of me, but as she said... I need to be healthy mentally and physically for the rest of this pregnancy in order to keep baby healthy.  Guess this is one of those risk v. benefits things and the benefits seam to be greater. 

7 more weeks

32.1 Weeks

55 days to go!  Yes, I am very excited about that.  I have never been this big of a complainer in my entire life.  My friends and family are probably pretty sick of me by now.  I feel like all I do is complain whenever anyone asks me how I am doing.  This pregnancy has just been so different than the first two.  I mean the beginning wasn't much different besides the allergic reactions, hives, and constant scratching.  Then there is the fact that I can't eat peanut butter and have to take an allergy pill every day, the migraines that get so bad I have to sleep with ice packs on my head, and now the random swelling that comes and goes.  Well, I guess that all adds up and eventually wears a person out.  As far as weight gain I am doing really good.  I am still under a 25 pound gain at 32 weeks.  However, I feel really heavy.  I can't stand for long periods of time and I get winded and exhausted really quick.  Any time I go for a walk I start having lower back pain and cramping.  Some mornings I wake up and I am just as tired as I was the night before.  My feet and legs will be hurting before I even climb out of bed in the morning.  I can't sit on the couch at home unless I put a couple pillows behind me because any slight incline backwards makes my face turn red, body get hot, and causes me to feel sick.  I was told this and the swelling is mainly happening because the baby is pressing on the main blood vessel that runs down my back.  I also have to roll over slowly when I am laying down because if I roll to fast I lose my breath and some times have heart palpitations.  So yes, I am ready for the 55 day count down to come to an end.  I am ready to bring baby Carter in to the world and lose sleep because I am holding my baby and nursing him in the middle of the night and not because I am breaking out in a sweat and trying to catch my breath from rolling over.  I am ready for this to be the last time I ever put my body through a pregnancy.  I am ready to complete my family of five. 

31 Weeks

I feel like the count down is really in place now and it's making me think a lot... Even though I am very ready to have baby Carter join us in the world so I can hold and squeeze him and kiss and love him... there are also going to be a couple things that I will miss about being pregnant like feeling the baby move and kick about throughout the entire day - every where that I go - knowing that baby is safe with me at all times. :-)

We had our 31 week check up today.  Things are still looking pretty good, but I am starting to retain water.  I have never experienced this before and I'll have to say it is NOT comfortable.  My blood pressure is up a little bit but nothing to be concerned with at this time.  Baby is measuring right on track and his heartbeat sounds perfect. 

We'll be going back again in 2 more weeks.  Doc said to relax and take it easy as much as possible.  I promise that I will do my best, but with 2 kids and 3 dogs.... seriously... how much relaxing can a person do?!

30.1 weeks with Carter v. 29 weeks with Ethan

Here is a picture from 29 weeks pregnant with Ethan. 

And since I didn't post a picture yesterday for 30 weeks with Carter, I decided to take one this morning. Here I am pregnant with baby Carter at 30.1 weeks.

 

30 Weeks

Baby Carter and I are 30 weeks along today!  Just 70 days to go until due date time!! 

Over the past weekend I washed all of Ethan's old baby clothes along with some new items and put them away in drawers for Carter.  I think he should be pretty set on clothes!  I am so glad that we saved all of Ethan's old stuff!  I also bought a new crib sheet for Carter and new bed sheets for Ethan.  Wanted to make sure the boys had the same theme going on. 

At my last doctors appointment I was told that everything was still looking good.  Blood pressure was 120/80, weight went up just a couple pounds, and now I will be visiting the doctor every TWO weeks!  That was the point where Cory and I looked at each other and said WOW, this is going fast! 

Just 70 more days!!!

Weeks 28 and 29 = Start of 3rd Trimester

I am combining my posts for weeks 28 and 29.  I never quite got around to posting last week and honestly I really was in no mood to take a picture of myself.  Just one of those weeks I guess. 

Baby Carter and I are still doing really well.  He's growing, I am growing, and my ability to eat large meals or even medium sized meals is quickly leaving.  Carter is a stretcher... he likes to press on my bladder and sit on my lungs at the same time.  I quickly run out of breath and can't lean back much at all.  If I lean back I start to get light headed, have trouble breathing, and quickly need to sit forward.  He wants to make sure that I am always fully aware of his presence.  I am a bit afraid of these next 11 weeks.  There are days now where I am already very uncomfortable and I know that baby Carter and I still have much more growing to do.  I just pray that he is good to me and doesn't make me too uncomfortable.  The part that keeps me sane is knowing how worth it will be in the end when I get to hold the little munchkin in my arms.  Ahhh :-)

A new thing for me with this pregnancy is swelling.  I have never had any swelling issues in the past during my pregnancies... but I think this one is going to be different.  Last night I had a hard time getting my ring off before bed.  I also had stiff hands and feet and noticed a line on my ankles from my socks.  Oh boy.... getting a little nervous... 78 more days... just one day at a time...

Here is a picture from 28 weeks and 6 days. 

27 Weeks

Just 3 months left!  3 Calendar months from today!  Yippy!!!

I passed my glucose screening last week and my blood counts were perfect.  Everything is moving along really well.  My belly is growing like crazy and baby Carter's kicks are getting a lot stronger. 

I have gained about 18 pounds so far.  I have been in major nesting mode lately according to Cory.  I keep telling him that I am always like this, but he says its been worse lately.  I think he is praying for nicer weather so he can put me outside.  ;-) 

Here we are at 27 weeks.

26 Weeks

On Sunday I reached another big milestone -  the 100 day count down began until we get to hold baby Carter in our arms!  Today we are in the double digits with just 98 days left.  Little by little I am doing more to prepare for Carter's arrival.  Next on my check list is to go through all of Ethan's old clothes and wash and put away the stuff that should work for Carter. 

Today we had our 26 weeks appointment.  My blood pressure is still wonderful, I've gained 3 more pounds, Carter is growing right on schedule, and his little heartbeat is beating like crazy.  Such a beautiful sound.  I had the glucose screening this morning and should hear the results from that test soon.  Hopefully I won't have to undergo the 3 hours test.  I did not have gestational diabetes with Mariah or Ethan so I am hoping the same goes for this pregnancy.  I also had a base line EKG done this morning.  Over the weekend I had some wild heart palpitations that scared me a bit so I told my doctor about it.  She said that it's probably normal, but it's always good to have a base line EKG reading.  Hopefully I won't have any more of those crazy heart palpitations.  I probably just overdid it that day with caffeine, chocolate, and activities. 

After our appointment Cory treated me to an amazing egg and cheese breakfast bagel sandwich from Panera.  I had never tried that before, but I think I have a new favorite place for breakfast!  The coffee was wonderful also.  Thanks hun! :-)

Here I am at 26 weeks pregnant with baby Carter

25 Weeks

Time for another weekly pregnancy post.  These weeks just keep flying by and baby and I keep growing bigger and bigger!  Just 15 weeks left.  Baby Carter and I are still doing really well.  I am definitely showing more now.  I go see the doctor next on March 29th.  This will be my last appointment during the 2nd trimester! 

I bought a couple things this week to prepare for baby Carter's arrival.  My large purchase was a Phil and Ted's Vibe stroller.  This thing is amazing and will definitely deserve it's own post as soon as I receive it and can take lots of pictures of it.  Cory jokes that it will even feed and change the baby.  I sold my jogging stroller and chicco stroller within days after purchasing my P & T stroller.  The P & T Vibe will work as a single stroller, double stroller, and an infant carseat can attach to it.  The double seat can come off and be used as a bounce chair or a booster chair.  The stroller is very light and can fold up to the size of a medium suitcase.  Truly amazing!  The other items that I bought this week were new bottles.  I used and loved the AVENT bottles with Ethan, but the kind that I had were not BPA free.  This wasn't as advertised when I bought them for Ethan.  I have since thrown them all away.  I was going to buy the new BPA free AVENT bottles, but a friend recommended that I try the Tommee Tippee bottles.  They are really cute and supposedly don't leak at all.  I had occasional issues with the AVENT bottles leaking in the past. 

Hope we love the Tommee Tippees! 

Here is a picture from 25 weeks.

Doesn't Ethan look excited in the background.

I don't think he was fully awake yet.  

24 Weeks

Baby Carter and I have reached 24 weeks!  Can you believe it?!  6 months already!  Just 112 more days to go until we will get to hold baby Carter in our arms and smooch on him like crazy. 

We are still doing really well.  I have gained just a little weight over the past two weeks since my last appointment.  I think I am at a total gain of about 14 or 15 pounds now.  I have been feeling well and baby Carter has been continually moving around like crazy. 

We spent a fun weekend in the Dells with some friends this past weekend and I'll have to say that having a pregnant belly sure makes it hard to chase Ethan around at the water park and through the play area.  I wasn't able to climb and bend and fit through areas that I had fit through in previous years.  I may not be huge yet... but I sure can't bend!  Thank goodness for Cory and Mariah.  They helped chase Ethan around and keep him occupied at all times.  He sure is an active little guy! :-)  We are definitely going to have our hands full when Carter joins our family.  I can't even begin to imagine how much running around we'll be doing with two active little men in our house.  Click HERE for a slideshow of our trip in the Dells. 

Here I am at 24 weeks pregnant with baby Carter:

For comparison, here I was at 24 weeks with Ethan:

23 Weeks

I am 23 weeks pregnant today and trying my best to get over this nasty stomach bug.  The bug hit me on Sunday morning while we were getting ready for church.  All of a sudden my stomach started burning.  I managed to go to church and run some errands with the family afterwards, but by 2pm I was napping with Ethan until 4pm.  Then by 6pm I was in bed for the night.  I stayed home from work on Monday.  Started to feel a little better by Monday night.  Now it's Tuesday and I am back at work, but my tummy is still rumbling.  I am ready to have my strength back and only feel the movement from baby Carter... not the rumbling germ bug! 

Besides fighting a stomach bug, baby Carter and I are doing really well.  We had a check up last Thursday.  My blood pressure is great, my total weight gain is 13 pounds, baby Carter is looking fabulous and moving around like crazy, and I am measuring right on schedule. 

Here is a picture of baby Carter and I at 23 weeks. 

Here is a picture of baby Ethan and I at 23 weeks (for comparison). 

(yes, same room - very different wall color)

Family Fun Filled Weekend

We had a lot of fun as a family this past weekend! 

On Friday night we went to Steinhafels and bought my new chair for feeding and rocking baby Carter.  I LOVE IT!  We picked it up on Sunday afternoon. I can spin and look out the patio door in our room. It is so nice and it has white stitching just like our couches downstairs so when we are done with it in our room we can put it in the basement. 

Fabulous!

Saturday we went shopping in the morning (the whole family) and then came home, Ethan and I took naps, and then we went up to the Brewers stadium to TGI Friday's for dinner. Food was excellent! Then we drove over to the Bradley Center and managed to park and get in our seats one minute before the game started. We were really high up, but the stadium was pretty full. I'd say the Bulls fans and Bucks fans were about 50/50. It was pretty exciting. Bulls won by a couple points. It was a close game all night.  This was Mariah and Ethan's first attendance at a professional basketball game. 

One of our Saturday morning purchases.  Baby Carter's first swim suit! 

(sorry, tried a bunch of times and for some reason this pic will only load sideways...)

Driving up to Brewer's Stadium for dinner. 

Trying to get Ethan to cooperate for a picture with mommy was quite difficult.

Mariah and Cory at TGI Friday's.

In the parking lot next to the Bradley Center we could see the restaurant where Cory and I got engaged.  It was fun to show the kids this restaurant through Cory's sun roof on his truck.

Mariah at the Bucks v. Bulls game.

Cory and Ethan watching the game.

Mariah and I taking a picture of ourselves.

The dancers getting things going.

On Sunday we ushered at church and had treats duty. Ethan is really loving Sunday School. Mariah only has a couple months left of Sunday School and confirmation. She gets confirmed on May 22nd. Then graduates 8th grade in June. Looks like I have more parties to plan..... Thankfully these will be outside parties!

Sunday afternoon we went to my sister's for my niece, Alannah's, 12th birthday party.  We had a nice time and ate lots of yummy food.  Happy 12th Birthday Alannah!