One more thing...

I forgot to mention this, but it's cool to me ('cause I'm a dork like that...)  I grew up in a family with 2 girls and 1 boy, my big sister has 2 girls and 1 boy, and my big brother has 2 girls and 1 boy.  So, I had to follow the trend!  It's as if someone in heaven hand-picked the grandkids and made it work out "just so."

A silly little observation; Bryan will tease me for even thinking about it (or especially blogging about it), but like I said, I'm a dork like that, and I think that it's kind of neat.  So there.

We're having a....

GIRL!!!  I have said all along that I would be thrilled either way.  And I would.  Truly.  There are lots of reasons that I wanted another boy, and there are lots of reasons that I wanted another girl.  We are lucky to have one of each, so this one was really just exciting either way.  And almost everyone that I had asked during the last little while had guessed a boy.  I don't know why, but everyone was thinking boy, even Bryan was.  I had no guesses either way, but just to antagonize Bryan, I said that I thought it was a girl.

Today during the ultrasound, the sonographer even said "he" at first.  I said, "oh--can you already tell it's a boy?"  And she said that she had just slipped, and that she hadn't even checked for the gender yet.  So, she moved the magic wand around to see if she could tell, and I saw it before she even said anything.  I knew it was a girl.  You can't miss the "hot dog bun."  (I had a friend from Logan tell me that analogy--it either looks like a little hot dog bun, or a little hot dog--and I've always remembered that and thought it was funny.)  So, sure enough, the hot dog bun was right there and I was so very happy!  Bryan told me later that he knew I was really hoping for a girl, deep down inside, and maybe he's right.  I'm really, really excited to have another sweet little girl.  Tess is too.  Miles kept asking during the ultrasound, "now is it a boy?  When will it be a boy?"  So, he'll have to get used to the idea. 

Bryan is also a little bit freaked out by the idea of another girl.  He is scared of the "girl drama" that we've already seen in Tess, and I'm sure we haven't even caught a glimpse of what the teenage girl drama will be like....  But on the other hand, maybe we won't have to utter the phrase "don't hit!!" as often with another girl.  Miles is so dang quick to hit, kick, or throw things at someone when he's mad.  So, as with all things, there is good and bad to both boys and girls.  I'm just so relieved and happy that everything looked healthy and normal.  No red flags to signal anything out of the ordinary.  I love that.

So, now begins the quest for a name.  As most of you know, Bryan & I like to keep the name a secret until the baby is born.  So, for now, it'll still just be "the critter."  But, we'll be thinking.  Or I should say that I'll be thinking and suggesting and then Bryan will be vetoing.  (Isn't that how it always is with the dads?  They can't ever come up with anything they like, but they can definitely tell you if it's something they don't like.)

In the meantime, I'll be shopping for some fun fabric for a few new blankies and getting some yarn for a sweet lavender afghan.  Shopping for girl stuff is so much fun!

"Join in!"

I just wanted to write about a sweet thing that Tess did...a while ago she was playing with a friend, who sometimes gets a little tired of Miles tagging along with them (which is understandable).  Tess & Miles got a new tent/fort for Christmas and the friend said, "let's write a sign that says 'Boys Not Allowed' on the door, so Miles can't bug us."  Tess started writing it, and then I pulled her aside and just suggested that the fort belongs to both of them, and that it's kinder to allow everyone to join in on the fun.

Later that day I noticed the sign she had made:

 You can see where she had started to write "BOZ N..." on the back for "Boys Not Allowed."  And the sweet sign on the front:  "Jooyn In for Evebuty."  Join in for everybody!  My favorite part is the picture she drew:  what is better than giant butterflies, giant heart-shaped flowers, and a multi-colored heart-shaped balloon?  Ahhh......  It made my heart melt a little bit.

Spider bite?

Yesterday after Miles' nap I saw what looked like a little spider bite in front of his ear.  It was a raised, splotchy white bump with 2 smaller bumps by it.  I couldn't see any pink bite marks, but I figured that's what it was and didn't worry too much about it.  Then, a few hours later it was gone...but there was another one in front of his other ear!  That was weird, but again, it went away quickly so I didn't worry too much.

In the night Miles woke up screaming and when we went in he was burning up. His fever was 103 degrees. We gave him ibuprofen and went back to bed but the whole night was terrible; he would wake up every hour or so, crying and feeling horrible. When we checked his temperature again, it had lowered to 99 so we weren't so worried. This morning he woke up happy, bubbly, like his normal self. But by about 10:30ish this morning I looked over and he had a huge rash of hives on both cheeks (the same thing that I thought were the spider bites.) So, after a doctor appointment today, we discovered that Miles has strep throat. Apparently some people produce an antibody or a protein when they have an infection (which is trying to fight the infection off), but then they are allergic to their own antibody/protein and break out in hives. So, I guess that's what happened. So they gave him the shot of penicillin and sent us on our way. I really hope it helps soon. I am totally unfamiliar with strep throat; thankfully I've never had it in my life! I know Bryan has had it and says it's awful. Miles is pretty miserable; poor guy.


Here are a few pictures of the rash: I figured I better take photos because I knew it would go away quickly (and sure enough, it was completely gone by the time I went to the doctor--so I'm glad I had the photos to show him.) As with all "owie-pictures," it really did look a lot worse in real life, and was on both cheeks. Poor kid.

Christmas & New Years

We had a fabulous Christmas/New Years holiday this year.  We spent Christmas Eve with the Terry family and Christmas Day with the Jensen family.  The kids were spoiled as always--Bryan & I (and Santa) always give a somewhat small amount to the kids because we know that the grandparents spoil them rotten!  But that's what grandparents are for, right?  As for Bryan & me, we decided not to give gifts to each other because our gift this year is a finished basement!  Bryan has begun working hard, framing the basement, and so far it's looking great.  Here are a few photos of the kids with their gifts:

Miles with his Lightning McQueen "light-up" shoes...

 Tess also asked for shoes this year--high heeled church shoes.  She was thrilled by how fancy they are...

 The kids riding their new scooters in the basement... (check out the framing--go Bryan!  You can see in the camera lens that the scooters were kicking up the sawdust from the floor.)

Tess really wanted a kick stand and a bell for her bike.  Her cute neighbor friend has those 2 features on her bike and Tess has been dying to have them for her bike as well.  Here she is with the bell/bike helmet combo, still in the package... 

 I love this picture because it just screams "Christmas!" to me...she's giddy and goofy and on a sugar/presents/cousins high!

Miles got a t-ball set.  Watch out!... 

For the New Years weekend, we decided to make the trip up to B's parents' cabin near Heber City.  Like most of northern Utah, that area had just had a huge snowstorm.  Timberlakes was freezing cold (around -15 degrees), with several feet of snow.  Bryan's sister and her family were with us and the kids (& adults) had a terrific time just playing games, sledding, eating yummy food, playing the Wii, and staying up way past our bedtimes! 

Here is Tess on the big sledding hill...

Bryan pulled people back up the hill with the 4-wheeler... 

Bryan & Miles, just chillin' on the sled... 

Tess made herself a nice little recliner to relax on... 

 Here are the kiddos with their cousins (Kade & Adrienne) playing "Just Dance."  That game was so much fun!  Miles was so happy to hold his nunchuk and join in with the big kids.

We ended the weekend by meeting Bryan's extended family at the annual "Pig out/Bingo" party.  Bryan's grandpa has been holding this family tradition on his birthday (New Years Day) for over 40 years.  He's now 91 years old and as spry as ever.  We feel so lucky to have 7 of our 8 grandparents still living--we have some good genes!