Welcome to the Eagles Nest!

Friday we decided to take a little road trip. We had heard the best time to go to see the Bald Eagles on the Mississippi River is from November-January, so we packed up the car and headed to Wabasha, MN. It was only a 50 Minute drive, which is doable when you are 8 months pregnant.



It is one of the most beautiful drives in the summer, but the winter wasn't too bad. We drove to the National Eagle Center and were able to see lots of Bald Eagles and also a Golden Eagle. The Bald Eagles were some of the most impressive birds I have ever seen. The tallons on a Bald Eagle can grip up to 400 psi. The average human can grip up to 20-50 psi. The also have amazing vision that can spot prey very far away.



All of the eagles at the center were there because they couldn't survive in the wild. I felt very sad for them until the lady told us that they typically live 20 years longer than the ones in the wild because of the vetrinary care they get.



We watched along the river and saw 3 eagles flying or perched in trees. The kids really loved it and we had a fun drive home. They played with their paper eagles. At one point I had to laugh when Sarah said to Alex 'lets have them "mate"'. Dave and I looked at each other and laughed. I think she was referening to when the court each other. They will interlock their talons and do summersaults until they almost hit the ground and then the fly up. They say that it creates a bond between the male and female birds. Interesting. If you come and visit. We would love to take you to the National Eagle Center. It was very fun.

Pregnancy Update

I am now in my 28th week of pregnancy. I get tired about every 3rd day and don't feel like doing anything and on the other two days I feel like cleaning, cleaning, and organizing. At my last Midwife appointment she said I was measuring just right and the heartbeat was healthy. The glucose tests came back normal, so that is all good news. I am a little anemic and need to remember to take my Iron pills everyday. My blood pressure also has increased and I need to monitor it each week to make sure it doesn't go up. She wasn't too worried because my bottom number was low, it was the top number that had increased. I had just chased Alex around the Mayo Clinic to look at the art there, so that could have something to do with it. I haven't taken him to an appointment until now.

Overall, I am feeling pretty good and am excited for this little baby to come. We are getting closer to a name, but haven't totally decided yet.

My mom bought a ticket to come and stay with us when the baby comes. Hopefully this baby will be a little more predictable than Alex was. I am just as excited to spend time with my Mom as I am for this little baby to come.

My Latest Project..

I just finished this week a project I have been working on. I bought this dresser at the Salvation Army for 50$ last week after being so frustrated with the ridiculously expensive press board dressers that we saw at furniture stores here. They don't make good quality furniture here for cheap and we don't have good furniture stores anyway to spend the money at. Anyway, I decided to refinish it and it turned out really well. I wish I had a before picture of the hideous brown with seventies brass handles but I was too excited to work on it to think about that. :) Now we just need to find a small dresser for the other side of our room and my room will be done.

Here are a few pictures of the finished dresser....

A couple more pictures...

Just a couple more pictures from Halloween...

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

What a fun day we have had and it isn't over yet. This morning I tried to get Alex to put on his Bob the Builder costume and he refused to wear the tool belt and freaked out about the overalls. So, I made an executive decision to go buy a new costume. We were lucky and found this costume....


His favorite "James". He was so excited. I hope it isn't too unhealthy for me to be feeding into his "Thomas" obsession, but he is happy so that is all that matters....right! He has had it on all day and loved running around in it at Sarah's School Parade.


Sarah looked so cute as a Monarch Butterfly. She is such a pretty girl and was cute taking Alex around in the parade. I watched her give him a little hug when her class was sitting in the hallway after the parade. She loves him so much. It is nice they have each other.






Hope you all have a happy Halloween. WE LOVE YOU!!

26 Weeks Pregnant...

This pregnancy has gone by so fast. It is hard for me to still believe that it is real. We struggled for so long to get Alex and even a little wait with Sarah, that it seems too easy. This pregnancy itself has been harder than the others. I am still very "gaggy" (is that a word?). I have thrown up more than I can count with this pregnancy, but in the end I will take that over having to go through the shots and infertility treatments.

I have been trying to explain to Alex that there is a baby in my tummy, but he has no concept of this. He does love babies or anything that is small and he will call it a baby. We have a crab apple tree in our front yard, and Alex calls the little apples "babies". It is very cute.

Sarah on the other hand is very aware of what is happening. She loves to feel my tummy and see if the baby is moving. She also likes talking to the baby and telling her how she will take care of her when she come. It melts my heart. She is such a good big sister.

Just a little update tonight....More tomorrow on Halloween and pictures!!!

"Finding Joy in the Journey" -Pres. Monson

Once your child learns to work the camera you will find some very interesting pictures on it. We probably have 50 pictures of Barbies in different outfits. Some we delete and others we just put on our hard drive. When I was getting ready to update my blog today I found this crazy picture that made me laugh. Sometimes pictures are so posed that you don't always see the day to day behavior of your kids. This one was definitely an Alex moment taken by his sister.



This week has been a normal week. I am now 25 weeks pregnant and "officially" in the third trimester. I am very excited to have this little baby come. This morning I was putting laundry away and went and sat for a minute in the nursery. I remember doing the same thing before Alex was born and wondering what he would look like, what his personality would be like, and how Sarah would interact with him. Now I find myself wondering the same things about this new little baby.

I read over President Monson's conference talk yesterday and really liked this quote.

"If you are still in the process of raising children, be aware that the tiny fingerprints that show up on almost every newly cleaned surface, the toys scattered about the house, the piles and piles of laundry to be tackled will disappear all too soon and that you will—to your surprise—miss them profoundly"



There have been many times in my life that I have not wanted to grow up. I remember holding my little sister in the hammock in our yard and wanting time to stand still. It is the same everyday with my kids. They always make me laugh or my heart ache for them to not grow up. I know they have to and I am sure I will have fun times with them as they get older (I will also get to go to the gym again) :) I do wish however that time could slow down just a little bit.