A Bublemaniac Bruiser...

We'll - at first glance this seems like an almost nightly event... Silas and Haven chasing bubbles on our deck.



But if you take a closer look, you'll notice that he has had his first life experience with the laws of physics. Yesterday, we went out to lunch after church with some close friends. Well, Silas got a little - OK a lot - upset and leaned back to throw a tiny fit. Well, when he came forward, his cheek met Mr. Table - and the table won.

It bruised within a minute...and today, well - see for yourself. His new nickname - "Bruiser"

A quick update on our trip

Well, our trip back to Illinois and Iowa was very fast. We flew into Cedar Rapids July 4th, and went straight to my sister Carla's. We were able to spend some time with their family and meet the new nephews. We also got to watch fireworks from her deck which is always nice not having to travel. We got up early Sat and spent some time in Iowa City. We were amazed by what the flooding has done to the campus and were really sad to see it like that. We were able to walk around downtown Iowa City for a little bit and see how that has changed since we have both been out of college. We also got some Iowa gear for Silas in preparation for what we hope will be a good football season. (You can always hope!)

Anyways, we left for Chicago from there and had a nice barbeque with Kurt's family. It was nice to see the cousins play together and get to catch up with the adults. Sunday, we went back to our church which is always a joy to see our "church family" in Chicago. We were also able to see some friends after church who have a little girl Silas's age. It was nice to compare notes on parenting toddlers and catch up on life! Sunday night we went out to eat w/ Kurt's family and spent some time at Grandma Aichele's place.

Monday we woke up and left for Iowa. We first went to Great Grandma and Grandpa Conklin's house for a home cooked Iowa meal (yummy!). Silas had fun playing ball there and we got to catch up on how things are going there. We left for the Grandpa and Amma Shippy's farm and had another wonderful home cooked meal and got to meet another nephew Brock, who I think is going to outgrow Silas very soon! We got some neat pictures that Kurt will have to post since they are on his camera.

Tuesday was a day on the farm. Grandpa took us around to see some cows and goats and let Silas play on his tractors. Daddy and Silas also played on the 4 wheeler. I wasn't sure what Silas would think of the 4 wheeler, but he immediately took to it and it was so hard to get him away from it. Many tears shed as we had to say goodbye to the 4 wheeler for this trip.

So, although it was a short trip, we had such a nice time seeing friends and family. We had a bit of a rough trip back being delayed in Cedar Rapids and not getting home until after midnight. Then, we had to get up to go to work on Wed, so we were all exhausted. I have gotten a cold now and Kurt has admitted this morning he's not feeling the greatest either, so do pray that we will kick whatever we have gotten and we will get back into the swing of things quickly! Here are some pictures to enjoy.

What we've been up to....

Well, the usual, nothing out of the ordinary. Silas is talking quite a bit and definitely letting us know what he wants and when! Sheila is going down to very part time work now, only one day a week. I gave my notice in April and they still haven't found anyone for the position, so I'm going to work when they need me. I'm excited about being at home more and spending time with Silas and getting ready for 2 little ones. Kurt is VERY busy with work as they have had a camp that he is a part of at the YMCA. It has made for some long and stressful days.

Other than that, we are excited about coming back to Iowa and Illinois over the 4th of July weekend. We have new nephews to meet, so we're looking forward to that.

Anyways, I'll post a few pictures. Silas is really into climbing on things and you'll see by the high chair photo he did it successfully! (his bottom is wet because he sat in water outside...just a side note).

So that's all for now!

A day at the zoo

Saturday was an absolutely beautiful day, so we went to the zoo with some friends from church. We had a very nice time and all of the kids did great. There were four kids total all under the age of 3 with Silas being the youngest, so we were all very impressed. We stayed for about 4 hours, so it was a long day. Anyways, Silas had a fun time feeding the giraffes and birds. He did try to swat at one of the birds that he was feeding which was kind of funny. We also got to see some very active grizzly bears and a moose. Those were some of the highlights. I'll attach a few pictures to show.

A day of Dr. Appts

Today (my day off) was filled with dr. appts. I had my 7 month appt where you have to drink that yummy drink to test for diabetes. I'm glad it is over with. Otherwise, everything looks good thus far. I'm gaining plenty of weight, but am on track. I think you always feel bigger than what you are. The baby's heartbeat is 160 which is great. So, my next appt is another month out. But only a few weeks until I'm already in the 3rd trimester. This has gone rather fast.....so far! I think when you have a child and are pregnant, you don't think so much about being pregnant because you are so busy. Much different than being pregnant w/o children.

Silas also had a dr's appt (15 month check up). Yup, he's still holding down the 5th percentile in weight. He weighs 20 lb 8 oz. He's such a little peanut, but he seems so heavy to me! His height is 29.5 inches which is the 10th percentile. He has stayed very consistent, so no concern there. Anyways, he got two shots, so he wasn't too thrilled about that, but at least it is over with.

Other than that, things are going really well out here. We have all been very healthy (knock on wood) and just enjoying summer time. We'll update more later.

Thank heaven for......bubbles

Yes, we have found the cheapest entertainment ever. A trip to the local Family Dollar store has gotten us coloring books, sidewalk chalk and wonderful bubbles, all for a dollar each. We love that! So, what have we been doing in our spare time. Yes, blowing bubbles nonstop. Silas loves it and Haven chases after them, this causes Silas to giggle like crazy and then it has us all laughing. The sad part is when we have to put the bubbles away for the night..............Here are some pictures to enjoy.

It's summer time!

Well we have a lot to catch up on. We are settling in nicely and really enjoying where we live. The weather is absolutely beautiful, cool in the morning and evenings but warm during the day. I love that we don't have humidity. It is funny talking to some people out here, because they will say "boy today is humid" and Kurt and I are like, um.....you don't know what humidity is.

Anyways, I've gotten to know a group of ladies that meet every Monday for a playdate. There are some kids around Silas's age, so that has been fun. Plus it is neat to interact with other women where we live. It has been a blessing and we both look forward to Mondays.

I will attach a few pictures to enjoy. Here are some explanations. Kurt always makes us blueberry pancakes on the weekends. However, Silas always wants to be a part of the action, so to solve that, Kurt now puts him in the backpack and cooks. I am able to get things done and Silas likes it and Kurt makes us breakfast. It is wonderful! Silas is also big into hats right now. If he sees a hat, he will continue to point at it until it is on his head. I even put him down for a nap today with it on, because he will get upset if you take it off. It is really cute though. The other pictures are of us enjoying our backyard. We got some sidewalk chalk and he really enjoyed playing with that along w/ just holding onto it. You'll see if he even decided to color Haven who thankfully doesn't really care! So I hope you enjoy and I'll try to be better with the blog this summer.