Dance-a-holic

No Agua

We don't have water at our house today.  Surprised: no.  Unprepared: yes.  We were given notice last week that due to the construction happening on a nearby street, our water would be shut off from 9 am - 4 pm today.  I had good intentions...getting ready before then and out of the house. But here I sit, having to use the restroom (as most pregnant women at my stage do) wondering how I will wash the dirty clothes in my basement, the dirty dishes in my sink, the dirty hands and feet leftover from playing outside last night and so on.  

I think a few baby wipes and some good smelling lotion should take care of most of that...minus the having to use the restroom bit, but I think Target can help there.

Off we go, somewhere, to get things done, away from our waterless home.

Wedding IKEA Bridal Shower...I need a nap!

Yup, that title sums up our weekend.  Friday we drove two hours east for my cousin Juleen's wedding.  This is the best picture I got of the newlyweds.  They were hard to catch. 

Me and my handsome hubby!  I love him.

Annelise cut a rug on the dance floor.  She was having a blast!

After the wedding, our family decided to drive all that way would be pointless without a trip to IKEA.  So, we spent the night at the Hyatt Place (very nice and affordable) and gave IKEA a run for its money the next day.  Our big purchase was a new dining room table and chairs - only $99.  Sorry, no photo.  I'm too lazy right now.

And to top the weekend off, today was my sister Leah's bridal shower.  She is getting married July 11th.  What fun we had!

Leah with her beautiful - and very yummy cake.  Can anyone say white chocolate mousse filling?  Yeah, I know you're salivating.

We three sisters.  Leah on the left, Me (7 months pregnant in the middle - thanks mom for cutting off the belly) and Sarah on the right.  Some say we could be triplets.  I think sisters is fine.

Keeping Cool

I'm reading 90 degrees outside today and 77 inside.  With no air conditioning to keep us cool - minus a small window unit in our bedroom - I'd reckon that's pretty good!  This typically bright and cheery girl always wants sunlight coming in.  But much of this week has been spent in the dark.  And for good reason.  Opening the shades just allows too much heat to creep its way into our small home.  Being 25 weeks pregnant, I can't seem to wear light enough clothing.  There's a fine line between modesty and comfort when you're this big.  And I tend to lean towards the modesty side of thing.  I did splurge a week or so ago and purchased a new maternity bathing suit. It was well worth it.  I've already worn it 6 times and plan to tally up a lot more in the coming weeks.

By the way, for those of you Luter family members that are attending Juleen's wedding this weekend, we will be there!  We're making a weekend out of it, staying at a local hotel and visiting IKEA the next day.  Excitement.

And next weekend, for the Fourth of July, we will be enjoying some time with the Bartlett family in Lake City.  This 'family cottage' of sorts - which happens to be my Uncle's home - will be our home for four beautiful days.  Well, we'll be sharing it with 25 other people, but who's counting?

Stay cool today.  I'm hoping to get the sprinkler out later and kill two birds with one stone: water our ugly grass and my daughter.

The Aftermath

This is 32nd Street in Holland post-flooding.  One of the busiest streets in town!  Many Hollanders are still pumping water out of their basements, renting dumpsters to trash personal effects that were ruined and getting their cars repaired.  I heard yesterday that my sister's van is 20th in line for water damage.  Yikes!  Please say a prayer for those that have been affected by the flooding we experienced last weekend.  We are so grateful to be in a dry house.

Father's Day Fun

I'm still getting used to the fact that we actually have a camera - a good one - that works!  I was totally brain dead yesterday and forgot to take pictures of the Father's Day celebrations. Although, I managed to capture a few at the beginning and end of the day.

Matt started the morning with a surprise breakfast (from Annelise of course) waiting for him in his regular devotion spot.  

Annelise gave him this picture, matted in a beautiful leather frame.  Kudos to my sister for taking such a stellar shot - and thanks to Picnik.com for the editing!  Memories like this will be cherished forever.

 

We spent the afternoon at my parents' house, enjoying the company of family and their pool. It was nearly 90 degrees yesterday, with enough humidity to choke a horse, so we spent a good 4 hours at the pool, most of it in the water.  I could hardly get Annelise out when it was time to go!

We much enjoyed our day with family, relaxing in God's beautiful creation.  Which leaves me on a Monday morning at 9 am ready for the weekend to start all over again!

Storms

Our little town made the national weather news this weekend.  By the looks of today, you wouldn't know that last night was the worst storm we've experienced in years.  Lightning, thunder, rain, flooded streets, streets closed, power outages.  Several of our friends have flooded basements - some with up to 4 feet!  We were fortunate, even with 7.5 inches of rain in 24 hours, to have a minor sprinkle in the basement.  Praise God!  

My sister Leah got stranded last night in waist high water in her new minivan.  We will find out today if the vehicle is salvageable.  She just got it as a gift on Wednesday!  Pray that the engine just needs to dry out.

Now, to help the others clean up!

Our Goings On

Summer has rolled in like a...lion, though we are looking forward to the days when it treats us more like a lamb.  With the end of school comes graduation, open houses, teacher clean-up days and more.  It almost seems like there is this big rush to get everything done.  Then, July sweeps in and takes us off to the land of vacations, watermelon and all things summer.  Here is a photo collage of our recent goings on. 

We are enjoying the appearance of daddy more frequently, without a computer glued to his lap. He has retired his red pen for the summer and we are expecting many Fridays spent enjoying garage sales, bike rides and more!

Annelise' two favorite spots while mommy is working from home.  (Above) Under the desk, digging through the trash can.  There must be lots of treasures in there.  (Below) Sitting next to the bookshelf, enjoying a snack, on top of the picnic basket.  She tells me lots of stories from this spot.

We've also been spending quite a bit of time outside.  Daddy loves to work in the yard, tending to all sorts of flowers and ground cover.  And Annelise loves to be mischievous while he does it.



I guess I should also note the purchase of our anniversary gift - a wonderful new digital camera. Thanks to great research and a bargain shoppers' attitude, we got the exact camera we wanted, only $100 cheaper.  It was a beautiful thing.

Who knew we had a rose bush in our front landscape?  For two years we've wondered what this ugly bush was (speaks much of our UNgreen thumbs).  Matt pruned it (read: hacked it down) and behold...a beautiful rose bush.  

And last but not least, I couldn't resist posting this picture of my big girl digging into a roast beef sandwich at Arby's.  She only ate about three bites, but from the looks of this picture, she must have been starving!

Happy beginning to summer to all of you!

Crazy Bounce

Its a rainy, yucky day.  What better day could we have chosen to have a play date at Crazy Bounce! Our friends Morgan and Acacia (with mommy Lisa) joined us for a couple hours of fun. Want to see more pictures?  Click here!

I just have to say, this video cracks me up.  Annelise totally gets pummeled by another little crazy bouncer and she doesn't flinch.  That's my girl!

To All Mothers with Daughters

Its a big deal when you reach the ponytail milestone.  I mean, graduating from pigtails with all sorts of barrettes to hold things together, to this:

What a sweet reminder that my baby is growing into a little girl.  Sigh.

A Busy Life

A short synopsis of our life the past week:

• Matt is in his final week of school, administering exams and of course, grading them.
• I had a golf event this week for the Mission.  Its our largest fundraiser of the year and proved to be a success once again.  
• Annelise is growing so fast, I can't keep up.  She asked to go to the potty last night.  Huh?
• We spent our weekend enjoying the beautiful weather (took a long bike ride) and celebrating the season of open houses.  Yeah for free, good food!
• I am feeling (and seeing) the baby move a lot these days.
• We have decided to name our new baby girl Elliora.  It is Hebrew and means "the Lord is my Light."  
• She will most likely be called Elli.
• We are still debating the middle name, though we have finally narrowed it down to three.
• Summer has quickly come and plans for vacations, weekend trips and lazy days are being made.
• And last, but certainly not least in my book, we will be celebrating our 5th anniversary this weekend by staying at a local inn, enjoying a dinner at The Piper and hopefully sleeping in.  Thanks to Papa and Granny Bartlett for watching Annelise for us!

A Rainy Day Update

I haven't updated on this pregnancy very often, mostly because I forget I'm pregnant a lot of the time.  But I had an interesting doctor's appointment yesterday and thought it was worth noting (if for no other reason than for my memory in the future).

As a second pregnancy often goes, I forgot I even had an appointment yesterday.  Much to my lack of planning, I had to take Annelise with me, which typically isn't a big deal.  But, I got caught up in work and realized my appointment was in 15 minutes, Annelise was still napping and I had not a stitch of makeup on.  So, I quickly woke her up (first mistake) and proceeded to make myself look half alive with a few globs of cover up and a dash of mascara.

Amazingly, we arrived at the doctor's office with a few minutes to spare.  The humidity was horrendous yesterday, so Annelise looked akin to Shirley Temple.  The nurses loved her hair! They called me in for my appointment and no sooner did the nurse put the blood pressure cuff on my arm and Annelise was screaming "No! No! No!"  She's never been protective of me before, but apparently she thought I was about to be tortured.  Did I mention she slapped the nurse before I could gain control of her with my free arm?  How embarrassing!  She was slightly nicer to the doctor, but only because she let Annelise play with the heart rate monitor.  

In baby news, it looks like everything is normal, except for the length of my baby's legs.  Her femur registers in the 90th percentile.  Hm...tall?  I've also only gained 4 pounds this pregnancy.  How that's possible with the amount of mint chocolate chip ice cream I've consumed, I don't know.  But, I'll take it.

And who knew that after an 80 degree day full of heat and humidity in a house without air conditioning, we'd have a 54 degree rainy day.  I even made my husband put the window unit in our bedroom last night.  

Oh well, here's the drinking a mug of hot chocolate and wearing fuzzy slipper socks.  I have a feeling we'll be breaking out the pool and sunscreen tomorrow.

Family Reunion

What a fantastic Memorial weekend!  On Saturday, we spent a quiet morning sleeping in, going out for breakfast at McDonald's and happening upon a neighborhood sale where we hit a jackpot of deals.

Originally we had planned to drive down to Indiana on Sunday morning for the Neal Family Reunion.  But thought, "What the heck, let's drive down Saturday afternoon and stay at a hotel."  We met up with Matt's sister and parents and enjoyed an afternoon of swimming in the pool and hot tub and a wonderful dinner out with family.

Sunday morning, we headed out to Crown Point, Indiana for the first ever Neal Family Reunion.  What a day we had!

Neal Family (We are on the bottom left kneeling in between Matt's parents.)

Annelise, Matt, Sarah (Matt's sister) and Mia (our niece)

The weekend must have pooped Annelise out.  She fell asleep in the swing!

Me and my wonderful mother-in-law, Lora.  I love her!

The party-planning committee: Matt's cousins Dawn (left) and Beth (right) with me in the middle!

It's a...

GIRL!  

Looks like we won't have success in breaking the streak this time.  We're very excited that Annelise is going to have a sister!

A Beautiful Summer Evening

There's more where these came from here.  You need to be a Facebook user - and my "friend" - in order to view the album.  Sorry, they're my sister's pictures.

Tomorrow is the Big Day

Yup, in 24 hours we'll be in the doctor's office, watching a screen that hopefully tells us what kind of child we're going to have.

I'm not anxious at all.  Actually, I'm more nervous about how Annelise will behave in the doctor's office than I am what kind of genitalia will appear on the screen.  Does that sound crude?  I hope not.  

It would be nice if we had a boy...that seems to be the only name we agree on.  The Lord knows Annelise could use a sibling tough enough to put her in her place.

But, we'd be happily content with another girl.  Sure would mean a lot less stress and shopping for me this summer.  

Check back soon for the real info.

What I Love About Today

• I've been feeling the baby move for a few weeks now, I just forget to blog about it.  As I type this, tiny feet are bumping the inside of my belly.  A kick has never felt so good.
• Sitting on the couch, watching the news, enjoying my second cup of coffee (which I got a great deal on at Meijer this week - $6.99 for Starbucks Whole Bean Sumatra with a $1 off coupon), reading blogs and email...still in my jammies of course.
• Its a bit cloudy outside, which makes my day easier.  No stress of playing in the yard, weeding or mowing the lawn - just laundry - which I typically hate, but am in a surprisingly good mood about today.
• We're only 5 days away from finding out what this next baby will be.  I have no idea.
• Annelise has decided that staying in bed during naptime is boring.  I finally caught her getting out of it today.  She's so sneaky!  Inevitably, I had to spank her to get my point across.  I think she's asleep now, but who really knows.  I don't dare open the door to possibly find her reading books on the floor.
• We have absolutely no plans for this weekend - no meetings, youth activities, work events, big house projects - we're hoping to spend some quality time at home tomorrow, as a family.  
• Kelly posted about her great finds this week at Meijer.  I was tempted to do the same, but didn't want to haul all the groceries out of the cabinet.  Basically, I planned two weeks worth of meals and bought $100 worth of groceries - all for $74.  Here's to couponing online (which I'm new to) and shopping the sale ad.  A novel idea, I know.

I hope you all enjoy your Friday.  Take some time to read to your kids today, kiss your husband and tell him what a joy he is in your life and most importantly of all, praise your God for the amazing provider He is in your life.  Really, we're all living better than 99% of the people on our planet.

Some of My Favorite Things

Is It Thursday Yet?

The only good thing about today is that I'm still in my jammies.  Can that be good?

Woke up late to Annelise screaming from her bed.

Turns out she just wanted to get down.

Made a wonderful pot of coffee.  No creamer or milk in the house.  

Had to use evaporated milk...its wrong how good that is.

Gave Annelise a bowl of cantalope for breakfast.  She dumped the entire thing on the floor.

I didn't realize it until I stepped in cold, mushy fruit.  Nice.

Decided it was time for a diaper change, then nap.  

Did the unthinkable...stuck my finger in poop.  Oh the joys of motherhood.

Started work off right - finding out there's a major error on the website

that is causing my coworker to get 100's of spam emails a minute.

Can't get a hold of tech support.  Sorry Teri.

The house is trashed, laundry undone - even worse, partially done.

No shower, didn't brush my teeth yet and its 11:15 am.

When does Thursday get here?

What A Weekend

I feel like there is so much to blog, I've been putting it off.  Blogging shouldn't be a burden, I guess.

We spent a wonderful week enjoying Tulip Time!  The weather was gorgeous and the festival was full of everything we hoped for - elephant ears, Dutch dancers, friends and parades.  It doesn't get better than that!  

Three beautiful Kentucky friends came to visit over the weekend.  We were so refreshed to spent time with Erin, Betsy and Sarah.  Thanks for coming friends!

And now we're back to the grind, preparing for school to end and a big golf event at the Mission. Summer is just around the corner and continues to tease us with sporadic days of sunshine and 75 degree weather - like today.

I'll leave you with my feeble attempt to photograph Annelise and her cousin Alayna.  By the looks of it, we have a lot of preparing to do before another baby comes.  She was not impressed with the idea of touching Alayna.

Seriously mom?  Don't put that kid on me!

Annelise at 16 months old and Alayna at 3 months old - almost the same size!