The Uriell Family Website

Ugh... seriously where does the time go? I really do believe the saying now that time flys by when you have kids. The girls have been great and we're finally getting into a groove. I think Sami has finally gotten used to not being an only child. I got a new camera about a week ago so you'll see a lot of photos for October.

Josie is growing so fast. She's rolling over and smiling a lot. She's also sleeping for 8-9 hour stretches at night which is nice for me since I'm still breastfeeding. I just can't believe how much she looks like Jason, it's so fun to catch a glimpse of him sitting on the couch with her and they'll have the same far off gaze in their eyes... it's rather scary if you think about it.

Sami is becoming more and more independent and insists on doing everything herself. She's doing great in big girl underwear, but still wears a diaper at night and during most naps. She is definitely outgoing and loves to entertain people by dancing and singing. I really think we're going to have to put her in dance next year but we'll see. With Ellie starting school this year, Sami has been talking a lot about school so I've started taking her to Sunday school at church and we call that her school for now and she likes it. She has a very active imagination and loves to pretend shop and pretend to go to school and then we pretend to talk to her sister on the phone and so on and so on. She's very good for only being two and is such a sweet girl.

Halloween is already next week and I'm going to miss it since I'll be in Green Bay for the Vikings game, but Nana and Papa are going to take the girls for the night so it will still be special. Sami is dressing up as a colorful fairy princess and we don't actually have a costume for Josie, she'll just be in Halloween themed attire most likely. Hopefully lots of pictures will be taken and if nothing else, I'll have to dress them up when I get home. We've been trying to avoid all the sickness around with the whole H1N1 scare, but it hit close to home today. Josie woke up with a high temp and a cough and luckily it only turned out to be croup, but my best friend Nancy found out today that she has pneumonia and H1N1 so we'll have to be extra careful to avoid the spread.

August was busy with softball, work and family. You know thinking back, why haven't I been able to update this site more because I can't remember what we did... I guess that's just life. At the end of August, Jason's brother James, brother-in-law Joel and Dad Jim came to visit for the weekend. It was great spending some time with them. We went to a Twins game with them and had lots of fun. Josie and Sami, along with Jason's family, rode the light rail trian for the first time. Sami thought it was pretty cool. What was even better was that Sami wore under the entire night and had no accidents... not even at the Dome... it was great. And best of all, the Twins won for Josie's first game.

Last weekend we went up to Grand Forks for Jason's best friend Jake's wedding. Jason's sister Tiffany came and stayed with us for the weekend to help with the girls and it was great having her around. They had a waterpark in the hotel similar to the Mall of America's just a little smaller and a lot cheaper... Sami had so much fun. The girls did great in the hotel and were able to spend some time with Jason's parents as well since they came for the wedding on Saturday and then spent the night with us. It was great to be able to spend some time with them too. The girls also did great in the car both up there and back... for a 5-hour drive, they were AWESOME.

Now next weekend, Jason's brother James and I think his cousin Josh are coming to stay with us just to get away for the weekend so it'll be fun having them around.

Sami's potty training has it's days. Most days now she's been having accidents. We're not sure why, but we're doing our best to try to correct it. She just amazes me every day with how smart she is and that's what confuses me the most. Just how well she communicates and understands things just wow's me. We had some professional photos taken of her a few weeks ago since a friend of mine runs a studio and she's going to send out Sami's photos to some different agencies around town and we'll see what happens. I'm going in with no expectations so we'll see what happens... the photographer loved her though and she totally hammed it up for him.

As for Josie, she's talking up a storm now. She's a very happy baby and loves to smile and stare at her sister. She's sleeping anywhere from 8-9 hours at night which I think is great considering she's still breastfed. She's also sleeping in her own bed... even though it's right next to our bed, that still counts. We actually just got her ears pierced on Monday too... she did a great job and looks just as cute as she did before. It's just a matter of time before she's rolling over and sitting up on her own.

It's still amazing to me how to kids from the same parents can look so different. Jason and I say we each have a mini me. I think we're finally getting used to having two kids too which is nice. We were having a really hard time with Sami up until the last week or so too... I think she's finally getting used to the idea of having a sister and sharing her parents and that has made things a lot easier.

Where does the time go? I am officially back to being a working mom and have to say I am enjoying it just a little bit. I love my girls, but I just don't think I'm built to be a stay at home mom, I don't have the patience for it... at least not with a 2-year-old.

I am happy to say that Sami is pretty well potty-trained. For the first few days we were doing our best to put her on the potty every hour and when we would forget, there would be accidents. Now for the past 10 days or so, she's just been telling us when she has to go and sometimes just going in to the bathroom on her own. We've had I think 3 days completely accident free and the rest are typically a one accident day... that usually happens when she doesn't get to the potty quick enough or is playing and doesn't want to stop.

Two weekends ago (Thurs 7/16 - Sun 7/19) we had Jason's family in town for a cousin's wedding. It was a lot of fun but exhausting at the same time. Sami even went a whole day with no accidents while attending the wedding so I was really excited about that. Although the first time we went to the bathroom at the reception, she saw that they had mints in the bathroom so we had a few false alarms later in the night because she simply wanted candy... little stinker. She had a great time dancing and playing with her cousins and we had fun watching her. For a few nights now, she's been waking up at 5:30 am and it's driving me crazy... I thought it was her bladder waking her up, but not the case today so I'm not sure what it is or how to fix it so any ideas would be great.

As for Josie, she's cooing and smiling A LOT. I do look forward to coming home after work to see her little face. She's sleeping for 5-6 hours, eats for a few minutes and then goes back to sleep for about 4 hours. Then throughout the day she eats about every 3 1/2 hours. She's doing great and getting big. I weighed her at home the other day and she was 14.8 lbs. WOW!!! I looked back at Sami's weight at her 2-moth check-up and she was 14 3/4 lbs so similar... phew! It's strange but she doesn't seem that big to me... she does seem really long to me though so we'll see where she's at next week at her 2-month check-up. She's still breastfeeding and I'm actually really enjoying it this time around even being back at work. We're actually having issues with formula right now since I switched from Enfamil to the Sam's Club brand and it definitely did not agree with her... so I'm going to try the Target brand and see if that's more agreeable for her. I looked at the store and all the vitamins and minerals are exactly the same as well as most of the ingredients so here's hoping it works for her. Luckily she doesn't use a lot, but it's nice to have for back-up.

This coming weekend will be my first night away from Josie. Well sad, I'm really looking forward to having a night to myself. Both girls are going to spend the night with nana and papa so at least I know they'll be in good hands and hopefully they behave well enough that maybe nana and papa will do it again. :o)

Life is finally getting into a good rhythm and I think I'm finally figuring out this 2 kids thing.

So Sami has been waking up the past few days and asking to go potty and ACTUALLY going. Today she even woke up with an almost dry diaper. Also this morning as we were sitting on the couch she said she had to go potty and got down and sat on her potty and actually went again... typically she says she has to go, but has already gone in her diaper. So I'm taking her lead and putting her in underwear this weekend to TRY to potty train her. She's been in her underwear for almost 2 hours now and has gone on the potty twice so it's going well so far. Now I just have to stay trapped in our house for the next few days so we don't have any accidents in public... not quite ready for that.

And Josie... well she's doing awesome now. She's been sleeping in her bassinet for the past 4 nights. AND she's been sleeping for a 5-6 hour stretch then waking up to eat for about 10 minutes and going back to sleep for 4 hours... it's been wonderful!!! I'm also wondering if she may not have any allergies at all and maybe she had a cold or something that was making her fussy. She had been waking up with the sniffles and for the past couple days she has been waking up fine and she seems like a new baby. She's smiling more and not screaming as much. We've been trying to burp her more since I think that may have been part of her discomfort and also have noticed sometimes when she's fussy, it's after she's been awake for awhile so she's just tired and having a hard time getting to sleep. At her appt on Tuesday, she weighed in at 12lbs 9oz... a big girl, but happy nonetheless and that's what's important. I'm trying to snuggle and enjoy her as much as possible for my last 2 weeks on leave with her and am really dreading leaving her... that and the cost of 2 kids in daycare... UGH! Speaking of that, once I got back to work we have a new arrangement for the girl's which I thikn will be nice... on Mondays and Tuesdays, the girls will stay home and my friend Linda will be coming ot the house to watch them and then Wednesday - Friday, they will continue to go to Rachel's. It'll be nice not to have to rush them to eat and get dressed on those mornings.

On Friday, we had a bbq at our house with a few friends over to watch the Canterbury Park fireworks which are always really good.

Sami had a sleepover with Carter at the same time and they did really good. They played and ran a lot and just before 10:00 they fell asleep watching Bolt. The fireworks were great and Josie slept right through them even though they were really loud being so close.

On the actual 4th we didn't do anything except pack for the next day. On Sunday, we were up early since Jason had to work the night before and we were picking him up to head to Mooreton, ND for Hannah's baptism. We were in the car at 6:00am and pulled into Mooreton at 10:00am. Church started at 10:30 so we made it in plenty of time. Baptism went really well except Sami doesn't know how to speak quietly or just be silent in church since she's not used to sitting in church... luckily they had a crying room that we spent service in. After baptism, we all went back to Luke and DeeAnn's for lunch and family time. It was nice to see everyone again and relaxing just hanging at the house. Sami went the whole day without a nap and did wonderful since she was so busy running around with her cousins. Around 7:00 we headed over to the farm so Sami could see the horses... this was the highlight of her life I think. She wasn't going to ride on the horse at all and refused as she clung to Luke. Luckily once DeeAnn got in the saddle, she was willing to do it. DeeAnn took her around the farm and Sami LOVED it... it's all she could talk about. She's a little cowgirl and is already asking to go back to the farm to ride the horsey.

Now Josie on the other hand has been having some issues lately... for the last couple weeks she's been really fussy and it seems that it's either gas or poop related. She gets so upset almost to the point that I would call it colic. She will cry and wail to the point that nothing will make her happy. But I called the doc today and we're going in tomorrow to see if she may have a cow's milk allergy which means no more dairy for me if that's the case. So we'll see what she says. Josie still has a hard time being by herself... I think she's going to be our cuddler. Sami from a week old would just lay by herself anywhere and be content. Josie on the other hand cries to the point that she turns bright red and sweats if you leave her alone for more then a few minutes. I'm hoping she gets over it soon since my back is killing me carrying her around all over and I want her to sleep in her own bed since I don't like her in ours. We've tried everything, but I guess we'll just have to deal with the screaming and hope that she won't wake up Sami with her crying at night.

I'm sure there's more stuff but you get the important stuff. That brings us up to the last week.

Today we had a big day planned... we went to the Waterpark of America with nana, Brian and Carter. Josie was not a fan of the kiddie pool, but loved the lazy river. She rode around a copule of times laying on Jason's stomach while I directed the tube. The rest of the day she spent sleeping or hanging out with Jason, nana or I. Sami on the other hand was running all over the place although she did not like being splashed or having water run over her head. She spent most of the morning riding on 2 of the smaller waterslides and then later on riding with one of us adults on a bigger slide. I couldn't believe it but Jason, Brian, Sami, Carter and I went on a big family waterslide. I was all excited about it since Brian and Carter had done it on their own and said how much fun it was. That is until we went around the first of about 20 turns. I went up so far along the side of the slide that I thought we were going to tip... this totally freaked me out and I was done. Around every turn I was terrified the tube was going to flip and we'd all go flipping through the waterslide hitting each other and Sami would drown or something. Well that didn't happen, we did make it out alive, but I was done with that slide and due to my fear, Carter was done too. After that, I retired to riding the lazy river with Sami. I think we were on it for at least an hour, just the 2 of us riding around and around. We had so much fun and she loved it. It was nice spending the quality time with her. We left around 3:30 and both girls were asleep within 5 minutes. When we got home I put Sami in her bed so she could continue napping and then Josie and I fell asleep on the couch for almost 2 hours... we were all exhausted.

Sami is spending Wed - Fri at nana and papa's house while Josie, Jason and I head back to Devils Lake for Alicia's funeral. It was 3 days of grief and tears, but also of strong family time as we came together to support James and help him through this difficult time. It's really changed all of us since it reminds us that nothing in life is guaranteed and how important it is to often tell those you love just what they mean to you.

On Friday, Josie and I made the trip back to the cities on our own since Jason was staying behind to spend some time with James. Josie did great on the drive except for the blowout she had in Fargo... that was a mess since I stopped at the one gas station that didn't have a changing station so I had to do it in the backseat of the rental car. But waiting for us at home was a sick Sami. The night before she had spent about 8 hours throwing up at nana's house... ICK. Luckily by the time I picked her up at Brian's house, the puking had stopped and she was mostly back to herself.

On Saturday, we went to my Grandma Marcie's house for a Fox family bbq. It was nice just hanging out while Sami played with her great-cousins and Josie again got passed around by my aunts and cousins. Both girls were great.

The next few days were low key and then on Tuesday, I got sick. Not fun. Luckily I was able to send Sami to daycare so I only had Josie which is easy considering she sleeps most of the day and Jason was coming home the next morning.

Josie's 1-week check-up went very well. She's off the chart for everything which is not a surprise considering the weight she started at and her sister's history we're used to that. The doctor said she looks great and we have a VCUG scheduled for June 26th since there's a 30% chance she has the same urinary reflux Sami had.

Today would start out as a normal day that ended tragically. Shortly after supper we received phone calls from Jason's sister and brother-in-law telling us that James' wife Alicia had passed away. I still get chills writing about it now. Only 6 days after being married and only 25-years old... how does something like this happen??? We are still asking that since they have not determined it yet.

She was a wonderful woman with a big, warm smile and an even bigger heart to match. She will be missed by many and never forgotten by James and our family.

We took off Thursday evening after Jason's softball games. We figured it would be easier with Sami since it'd be her bedtime, plus my leg pain was worse in the morning so it'd be easier on me to travel at night. My leg pain was the worst when I was sitting down so 7 hours in a car was sure to be bad. But after several acupuncture treatments, it was all okay. I drove the first few hours to Fergus Falls, fed Josie and then Jason continued the drive. About 20 miles outside of Fergus, a deer ran into the front passenger side of our vehicle... Jason tried to avoid it with little luck. We were very lucky that no one was hurt and our vehicle was still driveable considering it was 12:30 in the morning and we were in the middle of nowhere with a 2-year old and a 6-day old. After the collision, I couldn't sleep at all. We continued on to Devils Lake. The girls did really good... Sami got restless about 45 minutes from our destination and Josie stayed asleep the whole time. We got to our hotel sometime around 3:00am and the night manager was kind enough not to charge us the extra night since I think she felt pity for us traveling with such young kids and getting hit by a deer.

On Friday, we spent time in the pool as different family members arrived in town. Jason and Sami hung out a lot while Josie and I caught up on sleep. The rehersal dinner was that evening where Josie made her official introduction to the Uriell family. She was passed around all night while Sami ran around with the other kids. She was attached to Mikyla and the other girls and played so well.

Saturday morning we were up and in the pool early since Jason had to go to pictures early since he was a groomsmen. I had quite the morning trying to get myself and 2 girls dressed and ready to go, but we did it somehow. After pictures, the girls and I headed back to the hotel to nap during the ceremony. Everything went well and we met back up at the reception. Sami again ran around with the kids while Josie got passed around. It was great seeing everyone and they were shocked to see Josie and I there, but everything happens for a reason and I wouldn't have changed a thing. Sami danced the night away and showed off her skills. The girls and I went back to the hotel while Jason hung out for the night. It was a great evening that will be remembered by many.

Sunday we were up early and ready to go... the drive home was just as bad as the drive up... no deer, but a very cranky and impatient 2-year old, but I can't blame her. We all made it home safe though and that's what matters.

The following Tuesday I brought my truck to the shop to repair the damage by the deer... $3,400!!! Thank goodness for insurance.

WOW... I really need to update so I'll break it down into the major things that have happened starting with Josie's birth.

We dropped Sami off at Rachel's early since we had to report to the hospital at 7:30 to be induced. We were there promptly and shown to our delivery room where we settled in for the long haul.Our nurse Robyn was fabulous. After changing, my doctor stopped in to check on me and give the orders. At 8:00 I was only dialated to 3cm so she broke my water and pitocin was started by 9:00. Contractions were easy for awhile but then started getting pretty strong so I asked for the epidureal sometime around 1:00pm I think. All along Robyn promised me that I would not push for 3 hours like I did with Sami, she said she was aiming for about 45 minutes... also my doctor was aiming to deliver me by 5:00 so she could make it to her stepson's kindergarten graduation which was all fine with me. So as I'm waiting for the epidureal the contractions are getting pretty bad and I'm wondering what's taking so long since with Sami it all seemed to go quicker. Apparently they had to call in an anesthesiologist (sp?) since they were so busy. So Dr Jensen shows up in a plaid shirt, jeans and garden clogs... he was the same Dr that did my epidureal with Sami so I was happy to see him. He told us he was gardening when he got the page... kind of funny. Anyway, he starts the epidureal which I didn't think I was going to make it through... it seemed to take longer then the last one I had and I have had some leg issues for the past week that just become unbearable sitting on the side of the bed, but we made it through nonetheless. By 2:00 I was fast asleep for a well needed nap. This really helped since my body relaxed and started to labor on it's own. I woke up around 3:00 and Robyn checked me again before her shift ended... I was dialated to 6cm. Around 3:45 I was checked again and I was dialated to 9cm... the nurse started prepping the room for delivery and had me do one test push which was effective. Shortly after 4:00, Dr Torkelson came in after her last appt just as the nurse paged her. I pushed 3 times and Josie came into the world at 4:31pm, weighing 9lbs 13oz and 21 1/2 inches long. A big girl, but an easier delivery. It was wonderful.

Sami came to visit a couple hours later and wasn't very thrilled with Josie, but she's warmed up since. And sadly my throbbing leg pain returned after the epidureal wore off... that was horrible and was the only reason I was taking pain meds. I felt really good after delivery and Josie started nursing really well. We went home the following Sunday, May 31st.

We've been anxiously awaiting Josie's arrival and have a d-day... Friday, May 29th unless she decides to come sooner. We've been putting the final touches on the house and making sure we have everything ready so when we come home, it's one less thing to worry about. We've been doing our best to prepare Sami for the changes coming her way... as much as she seems to understand what's going on, I don't think she really gets it, but only time will tell.

This past Sunday we gave in and gave Sami her blow-up pool early. We were going to wait until we came home from the hospital, but it was so nice out and she was being such a good girl, we gave it to her early. We told her that she got this pool because she is going to be a big sister. Even though the water was freezing because she wasn't going to wait for it to warm up, she had a blast and spent 2 hours in and out of it.

I really need to get some pictures updated on here too and will do my post to post them by tomorrow since I have some great pictures of Sami riding the ponies at Canterbury Park last week. She was SOOO exicted. Every Sunday is family day and there's free pony rides so we went out and she was great about waiting in line and when it was finally her turn, she picked her pony and wasn't scared to ride at all. Which is great since last year she was freaked out by it a little. Jason and I said we'll need to take her up to her aunt and uncle DeeAnn and Luke's this summer to do some horseback riding if possible. She absolutely loves horses now.

So wish us luck for Friday... hopefully Josie comes quicker then Sami did and we'll be resting with her in our arms by dinner time. I will post pictures and update the site once we get home and get settled!

It's crazy how time gets away from us. Well let me tell you about our weekend... it was so awesome.

On Friday, Sami and I got home to find out that Jason's mom, sister DeeAnn and future sister-in-law Alicia were all in town for his cousin's bridal shower on Saturday. So we headed to the Holiday Inn in Lakeville to hang out. It was so great because DeeAnn brought 1-week old Hannah so we got to meet our newest niece for the first time and Sami was so sweet with her. I was holding Hannah and Sami just sat there and gently pet her head, smiled at her and gave her kisses... that gave me some hope that she may like her little sister after all. Sami also got to go swimming in the pool they have there and she had a BLAST. They had a great toddler pool that was only a foot deep and had a slide that she loved. I think she spent almost 2 hours in there and even hung out in the hot tub with Jason for a little bit too. It was a great night getting to see some of Jason's family and Sami having fun.

On Saturday, we packed up the car and headed to Rochester for Jason's softball tournament. This was the first time this year that I took Sami to one of Jason's games so I was crossing my fingers that she would behave so we could go to some games this summer without me worrying about chasing her and having a newborn and she did AWESOME. I brought her little chair along and she was so good about sticking near by and if I told her to get back over by me, she was pretty good about stopping and coming back. Carter was also there so he helped keep her inline when I needed him to. After 2 games on Saturday, we went to dinner and then back to the hotel for the evening. Brian, Jessie and Carter stayed in the same hotel as well as Mac, Angie and Cyrus so we all went swimming with the kids. Now this pool was not nearly as nice as the one in Lakeville, but Sami didn't seem to care, it was still a pool. Between the pool and the hot tub, I think we spent another 1-2 hours in the pool before heading to the room and putting Toy Story on for the kids to watch. I think this would be the first time since Sami has been in a big girl bed that we've spent the night in a hotel so I was wondering how well she would sleep. Well I brought a guard rail along for one side of the bed and I slept on the other. At about 9:30 Brian, Carter and Jessie headed back to their room so I turned the lights off and told Sami it was time to go nigh-night and she went right to sleep. I did discover that night that she grinds her teeth A LOT in her sleep and occassionally talks. But she slept until 6:45 which I thought was pretty good considering and Jason had to get up at 7:00 anyway to get to his game at 8:00.

So on Sunday, we went swimming again for about an hour in between games since there was a 3 hour break and then we spent 5 hours at the softball fields and again Sami did AWESOME!!! Around 1:00 I could tell she was tired, so I put her in her car seat and drove her around for about 15 minutes until she fell asleep and then went back to the softball fields and just rolled down the windows while we sat outside the car watching the games. She only slept for about 40 minutes, but it was enough to put her in a better mood. Jason's team ended up playing 4 games that day and got 3rd place so it was a great tournament... except that I developed heartburn all day and that was no fun. Around 5:00, we started our trek home and Sami slept almost the whole way. It was a great weekend and made me feel so blessed to have such a great little girl... not too many tantrums and overall a great weekend together.

On the pregnancy front, I feel like I've gotten huge, yet at my last appointment I only gained .3 lbs so I must be gaining baby weight and losing body weight. It's getting harder to move around and more painful to walk, but I just try to take it nice and slow and then it's not so bad. Starting tomorrow I have a dr's appt every Friday afternoon until Josie comes. At each appt, I'll be hooked up to a fetal monitor to check the baby's heartrate and make sure everything is okay. It's getting excited to know that we're in the final stretch and soon I should have my body mostly back to myself. I think we're prepared, but I'm sure I'll find things I missed. Sami's bag is packed for while I'm in the hospital since she's staying with nana and papa, and I have most of my stuff put together, but need to get it in a bag. I still have a feeling in my gut about May 30th which would mean only 3 weeks left, but we'll just have to wait and see.

Jason's sister had her baby on Friday afternoon... it was a girl and she was 8lbs 7oz and 20 inches long. So exciting that Josie will have a cousin her same age since on the Uriell side of the family, Sami's in an age group of her own, but she doesn't mind.

At my appointment on Friday everything was good. I gained .3lbs which puts me at 25lbs so far which is good considering I gained 40lbs with Sami. My blood pressure was good, but my blood sugar has been high here and there, but the doctor didn't seem considered since for the most part it's where it should be. Starting with my next appointment in 2 weeks I will be placed on a fetal monitor at every appointment to watch the babies heart rate. We'll have to do that at each appointment we come to which starting May 8th will be every Friday at 4:00 until Josie comes. When you think about it that way, it's not too far away.

Sami has been going through Nana withdrawals I think. On Saturday she was whining all morning about nana papa's house. So I had her call nana to see if that would calm her since we have no planned visits right now. Then when she woke up from her nap the first thing she did was say "Nana Papa's House?" Well we called nana and headed over there for a few hours. We hung out with nana and papa and played with the puppies so she was satisfied.

On Sunday, I had a baby shower with some girlfriends and that went well. I got a lot of clothes and stuff that we needed replaced from having Sami. But when I got home with everything, Sami completely broke down. She cried on and off for about 2 hours while I was trying to put everything away and get organized... I think the jealousy got the best of her. It scares me a little that she was that upset over stuff because what will she do when it's a real baby??? Hopefully the stuff is more upsetting then Josie herself. I really want to give Sami the benefit of the doubt, but I guess only time will tell.

Last weekend was so much fun... Sami spent the night at nana and papa's on Friday with Carter. Nana said even though she was completely exhausted, they did pretty good. Sami was up at 6:30 on Sunday and of course that meant everyone was. The weather was decent so Saturday afternoon we went the park with her for a little bit which has become her favorite thing to do... it'll be nice to get our swingset fixed so we can just go in our backyard this summer (for those who may not remember, a tree fell on it last year during a storm).

Then on Sunday, we had some friends and their kids over for a playdate. We grilled out and the kids played and it was a nice afternoon, except I was exhausted because I had some allergies kick in on Saturday which made sleep impossible because I couldn't breath out my nose. The weather was cold on Sunday too which was disappointing cause I hoped to take the kids out to play with bubbles and maybe go to the park together, but hopefully we can do that for our May get together.

I witnessed one of the cutest/funnest things from Sami on Sunday. She was sitting next to me playing with her Swiper (from the show Dora) doll she got for her birthday. I saw her put Swiper's nose in her eye a couple times and all of a sudden she pulls out her pointer finger and gets stern with him saying "No, no Swiper. Time out!". She walked over to the stool that we usually use for her time outs and put Swiper on it and then came back over by me and sat down. About a minute later, she walked back over to the stool and I could see her talking to Swiper, then point at her eye and then talk some more and give him a hug. I about pee'd my pants I thought it was so funny. I can only assume she was telling him why he was put in time out, then made him apologize and then gave him a hug and told him that she still loved him. Goes to show that she definitely knows how time outs work.

This weekend should be a fun weekend... Jason's sister DeeAnn was being induced this morning (she was due this past Monday). We're very exciting to find out what she had since they weren't able to see if it was a boy or girl during her ultrasound. We're hoping everything goes well for her since I've been told she has not been feeling well for a couple weeks. I also have a routine Dr appt this afternoon to see how things are going with our little one. Tomorrow is a free day for us and then on Sunday, some of my friends are throwing a mini-baby shower for me so that should be fun.

I can definitely say that I am ready to have this baby. I'm at that point now where I want to be done. I don't remember having this much pain when I was pregnant with Sami... I remember being uncomfortable towards the end, but it wasn't painful by any means. I just want the pains to go away... if that happened, I think I could deal better with knowing there could still be 6 weeks left. I keep hoping that I go early and when I say early I only mean a couple weeks maybe... but I'm not getting my hopes up since that was definitely not the case with Sami. But like "they" say, every pregnancy is different, so one can still hope. Oh at my last Dr appt 2 weeks ago, we were told that Josie is measuring around 81%. But since Sami was a little larger and is still measuring around the 95% area, that the Dr says that must be the way my babies are. She said she has no concerns of me going pre-term which is 36 weeks and that the only way they would induce me early is if my diabetes doesn't stay controlled or my blood pressure spikes which both have been right where they should be. Not exactly what I wanted to hear, but I know it's best for Josie to stay in there and marinade for awhile longer... I mean Sami did and look how wonderful she turned out.

Easter weekend was great. Weather is getting warmer so we're getting outside more. On Saturday, Jason and I took Sami to the park and she is getting more and more comfortable exploring on her own. Although she gets really distracted when there are other kids around... she just sits and watches them rather then playing and doing her own thing. After the park, we went to Dairy Queen and Sami now gets her own kids come when we go... she still needs some help licking the edges as it melts, but it's fun to watch her because she gets it all over her face.

On Sunday, Sami got dressed in a pretty dress and instantly transformed into a little debutant. She would stand and twirl and flirt because she thought she was so cute. We went to church and then headed over to nana and papa's for Easter lunch with the family. We didn't make her search for her Easter basket since we didn't know if she'd really get it yet, but for sure next year. It was a relaxing, laid back day with the whole family.

On Monday and again today, Sami stayed home with Jason since he has the next two weeks off. With the weather being so nice today (64 and sunny) they were outside for most of the day and went to the park again. I think we're going to be spending a lot of time outside for the next 4-5 months... with me being on maternity leave and Jason having a few weeks off from Ford, it should be a fun summer. Right now we are planning on taking our first family vacation with nana and papa at the end of July. Hopefully Josie is a good baby like her big sister and everything will go seemlessly.

Well I had another ultrasound last week to see how big Josie is getting. The doctor said she is measuring in the 81% range for size right now, but with Sami being a little bit bigger, that seems to be normal for me... so at this point we'd assume Josie will be around the 8-9 lb range like Sami was. The doctor also said that since I was overdue with Sami and my blood pressure and blood sugar are under control, at this point there's no reason to believe that I will have a preterm delivery. So that means at least another 3 - 7 weeks since 36 weeks is full term. But with my luck it'll probably be more like 7 weeks and maybe a few days... but hey she'll come when she's ready right?

Another busy weekend, but great. On Saturday we had a joint birthday party for Sami and Carter and it was lots of fun. All morning was spent preparing and getting ready and it paid off. We grilled and the weather ended up being okay for that. After eating, the kids started opening presents and that was like a fury of tissue paper. I was trying to make Sami sit and wait for Carter to open his presents so everyone could see what the kids were getting, but she's definitely too young and doesn't care to watch others open presents. So we let her open hers at the same time. She received LOTS of summer clothes which is awesome since we don't really have any in the right size. She also LOVED her dress-up clothes, Dora dolls and for sure her new crib for her babies... she's been playing with it since she got it. After presents it was time for cake. Since Sami doesn't understand blowing out a candle, Carter helped with that, but then she didn't care to wait for silverware... she bent right over her cake and took a bite... it was so funny. She took at least 3 bites before we got a fork in her hand.

Unfortunately the night didn't go as well as the party. I think the excitement and stimulation just screwed her up. She woke up at 12:40 am and would not go back to sleep. Jason ended up taking her upstairs at about 2:00 am so I could get some sleep and he tells me the rest of the night didn't go well either.

Then on Sunday we all woke up around 8:00 am completely drained. Mac called at 9:00 to see if we wanted to meet him, Ang and Cyrus along with AP and Bean at Champps for lunch. We met them in Minnetonka at 11:00 and had a nice lunch just hanging out and chatting, Sami and Cyrus were great until Sami had a meltdown because she had to go potty and she refuses to go on a toilet without a potty seat on it. So we decided to head out at that point. She fell asleep on the way home, but unfortunately for Jason and I she woke up when we got home... we had planned on getting a nap in while she napped. But apparently her little cat nap was enough for a second wind. We spent the rest of the day playing with her new toys and relaxing at home. Luckily last night she slept great and I actually had to wake her up at 7:00 this morning.

Now on to baby news... she's been moving like mad and everything seems to be great on the baby front. On Wed, I have an ultrasound to check her size and then an appointment with the dr on Friday. At Friday's appt, I plan on asking the dr what the plan is based on my first pregnancy/delivery, the current size of the baby, and the gestational diabetes. I'm hoping she tells me that she won't let me go past my due date or even better a week or two before the due date, but I guess we'll wait and see what the dr says. Starting with this appt, I go to the dr every two weeks and then starting in May, it'll be weekly appts. The end is in sight and as much as I know it's easier to take care of her in my tummy then it will be to take care of her out, I'm ready for her to born. Or maybe it's just that I'm ready to take a break from work for awhile... either way, I'm getting excited to see what she looks like and how Sami will be with her.

Can you believe our baby is already 2-years old. We had such a fun weekend. On Saturday we hung out with Brian, Jessie, and Carter and started at the Children's Museum in St Paul. The kids had such a fun time playing at all the exhibits and running around. After hanging out there for a couple of hours we headed to Cosetta's for lunch. It was was a madhouse, but for some stupid reason we hung around for it. Sami was starting to have a melt down there because she was ready for a nap. So after lunch we headed to the Mall of America for Underwater World. Luckily she fell asleep in the car on the way there. It wasn't much of a nap, but it was enough to put her in a good mood for Underwater World. Sami loved all the fish and sharks. Her favorite parts were the coral reef fish and Nemo and Dora at the end. It was a lot of fun. After that it was time to get home... it had been a long day. Once we got home, we all climbed into our bed and turned Shrek on for Sami. It wasn't long before we were all asleep. After we woke up it was time for dinner and then more relaxing... it was a perfect day.

Then today after daycare, Sami came home and opened presents. She was upset that there weren't more, but we got her over that as quick as possible. Then we let her watch Shrek the Halls which is what she asks to watch ALL THE TIME. And of course we had her favorite dinner... Mac and Cheese. We wrapped up the night with some cake and birthday song. It was the perfect day and when I asked Sami if she had a fun birthday, she said YES. What else could you ask for?

Tomorrow we have Sami's 2-year check-up at the doctor's office and am excited to see where she is on the growth charts... that's always my favorite part. She's an amazing little girl and we're looking forward to he year ahead and seeing what a great big sister she can be.

Quiz Results
Loading..........