Play time!

Traeger "reading"

Sorry for the sideways image. Enjoy Traeger in action!

Not all fun and games :O)

Well I'd be lying to you if I said parenthood is all fun and games! Just last week I had "one of those moments".... I had Traeger all set up with his afternoon show while I jumped in the shower. Well, shortly after I jumped in I heard a playful scream coming from Traeger. Thinking he might be in the bathroom I called for him to come over to the shower so I knew he wasn't getting into trouble. He never came so I just thought he was really enjoying his afternoon show. But the mother instinct kicked in and I knew things were a little too quiet for such a playful scream earlier. I peeked out of the shower to make sure everything was ok only to find Traeger standing in a puddle of toilet water, the whole roll of toilet paper off the roll and Traeger continuing to pull all the toilet paper in and out of the toilet. Needless to say he got a shower after we got the mess all cleaned up and a good reminder that that kind of activity wasn't ok! Oh the joys of parenthood :O)!

Father/Son bonding!

We have enjoyed going to see the local high school boys and girls basketball teams play some ball! Traeger and Daddy all bundled up coming home from a game!

Traeger has been into building tall towers with his blocks!

Once again, Luke producing the biggest, wide mouthed smiles and giggles from Traeger.

All bundled up!

Thanks to Cori and the quality winter wear she provided for us, Traeger and I were able to get out and enjoy the sunny but brisk 12 degree weather today! We both were a little sick of being inside so I figured a walk to the Post Office to mail a pkg. and a stop at the coffee shop to pick up a few gift cards would be a good outing and kill two birds with one stone. It wasn't so peaceful trying to get Traeger into his winter gear. As a matter of fact he cried through the whole process but once we stepped foot outside the crying stopped and he sat quietly and we enjoyed a peaceful stroll.

Sneak Peek!

At my first ultrasound they saw that I had a low lying placenta which could led to different problems if it doesn't "migrate north" as the weeks go by. Well, the good news of the day was that my placenta indeed had "migrated north" and there shouldn't be any further problems with that! We're thankful for that answer to prayer!

We got another sneak peek at our little girl when they were checking my placenta! I was super excited about that because with a girl you never know FOR SURE. We still don't know 100 % that it's a girl but we got another awesome look at the parts and it's pretty clear (they said 99 %) we still get to think pink. Her heart looked wonderful, with a heartrate of 149. Because they were really there to check my placenta, I didn't get to see the screen for a lot of the time. I really only got to peek at her face, profile and then the parts. Of course, she looked beautiful and we can't wait to meet her! (I know only a mother can look at an ultrasound picture and see beauty :O))

I am 26 weeks along now. I love this stage of pregnancy. Not so much the getting bigger part but with that is the joy of being able to feel the baby moving and shakin' things up inside :O)! She is moving more and more everyday and appears to be developing right on track!

God is so good!

First snow of the season!

On Saturday, Luke was out running a few errands and decided to stop by the good ol' Do It Best to pick up a sled for Traeger! I wasn't sure what Traeger would think about the whole sledding idea, but from the minute Luke put him in the sled you couldn't wipe the smile off Traeger's face. It was super cute and really fun to experience Traeger's 1st snow, that he could enjoy, together.

Dinner Theater

Thanks to some dear friends, we were able to enjoy a date night at the Camp Forest Springs Dinner Theater. We joined Matt, Julie and Hudson Huffman there for a relaxing night and enjoyed the delicious food and a wonderful show!

Thankful!

We traveled to Omro over the Thanksgiving weekend! It was a weekend filled with yummy food, great company, deer hunting adventures, 8 hours of shopping fun, and meeting up with special friends! We have so much to be thankful for and praise God for His provisions in our lives on so many different levels!

Mom and Dad Bohn hosted the Thanksgiving celebration this year!

Mom and Dad Hatfield drove to Omro to visit for a few hours.

We were so glad they made the trip!

Mom, Grandma Jo, Aunt Jean and Uncle Pete!

Another highlight from our holiday trip was seeing Auntie Casey for a few hours.

We are so thankful for family and friends that love us just the way we are!

Practicing his skills...

Just the other day Luke thought Traeger could use a tee to practice his baseball skills! So, he cut the top of a cone off and waalaa, a baseball tee was made for many hours of fun!

I guess we first need to teach Traeger that holding onto the bat is top priority. But did you notice Traeger did keep his eye on the ball :O)! One thing at a time!

I know you can't read his yellow shirt but I thought I'd make note of it because Elena got it for him. It reads with a baby chicken next to the writing, "Chicks Dig Me" Isn't that so fitting for a gift from Miss. Elena :O) Recently we scored this basketball backboard from the local St. Vinney's. It was sitting out next to the dumpster and was sad about the next garbage pickup day because it still had some life in it. Well, I knew just the kid that would get great use out of it. We decided it would work best if we took the backboard off the stand and since it was FREE, we could do whatever we wanted. This has proved to work out beautifully as Traeger can actually make baskets and we don't always have to lift him up to make a shot! Yeah God for FREE toys!

Visitors for the weekend!

Luke was gone all day Saturday at Power of One, so having Nonnie and Grandma Jo in town was a treat and very helpful! We enjoyed reading stories, playing basketball, going to Happy Joes-thanks to Nonnie, watching shows and just being with each other!

Traeger and Nonnie reading stories!Saying goodbye to Nonnie and Grandma Jo!

Thanks for a wonderful and relaxing time together!

Time change!

We've somehow managed to make it through 2 other time changes since Traeger's been born with flying colors. However, this one finally got us. Traeger woke up at 5:45 and was ready for the day. We went about our normal Sunday routine and by about 10:30 Traeger couldn't make it any longer. He fell asleep while watching a morning show.
I'm hoping it doesn't take too long to get back on track!

Our first PINK gift!

Thanks Grandpa and Nana for our first gift of girl stuff. We appreciated the onesies and look forward to seeing our little one in them!

Little Helper!

Traeger has been big into helping us take the garbage out. He even drags the bag from the kitchen to the garbage can outside with little help and a few grunts along the way. The little grunts to get the bag moving is my favorite.

Blessed!

Many thanks to Auntie Casey, Grandpa and Nana and

Grandpa and Nonnie for more Halloween treats!

Traeger opening Auntie Casey's pkg. He loved the straw, spider web noodles, card and candy.
This picture he was pleasing away for mommy to open the sweettarts :O)!
He was quite content playing and having a special treat!

Traeger playing with the gift Nonnie and Grandpa got him!
Good thing there is more where this came from. Nana made Traeger/us some yummy applesauce for Halloween!

Thanks everyone!!!

Family time!

It was so much fun to have John, Nicole, Annabelle and Madison come visit for the extended weekend, Wednesday-Sunday. Grandpa and Nana made an appearance on Friday afternoon and stayed 'til Sunday as well!. We got out for a few walks to the park, played some bocce ball, had a date night just the 4 of us without the kids-thanks to Nana and Grandpa, played many computer games, ate out-thanks again to Grandpa and Nana for treating us, chatted and just enjoyed each others company.

Thanks for guys for taking the time to come and hang out with us!

Annabelle and Traeger watching a morning show.

The kiddos had fun playing at the park.

Mikaela and Madison (6 weeks old)

It's a.....

GIRL! We had our ultrasound today and found out we get to think pink!
It appeared that she was developing and growing well. Her face is on the right. I know it's difficult to make heads or tails of these pictures sometimes. You can see her eyes and get the idea of where her nose, mouth and chin would fit.

And then there is me,

for those of you who have asked for a belly picture. I feel so blessed to be able to experience the joys and challenges of being pregnant. God is so good and we continue to pray that both this little one and I will come through healthy and strong 'til the end! I am starting to feel her poke me every once in a while. The movement stage is always fun because there is a constant reminder, besides the ever growing belly, that God is knitting together a wonderful creation inside of me. I am honored I get to participate in this miracle!

Thankful!

Thanks P family for sending me a special package in the mail for Halloween! I love my new pumpkin plate, Halloween spoon and fork! Oh and the candy was a great addition too :O)

Sucker!

You may or may not find this as funny/cute as I do but I'll share it anyway. On Friday morning, Luke and Traeger ran our crushed cans to the recycling center to collect a few pennies-$2.60 to be exact. Upon their return I noticed Traeger had something in his mouth. Apparently they give suckers away at the recycling center and Luke thought Traeger "needed" a sucker right before lunch. For some reason I couldn't wipe the smile off my face because it seemed like only something a Daddy would do. You can tell in the picture how proud Traeger was of his sucker that Daddy got for him.

Helene's Apple Orchard

I really enjoy being able to experience new events with my family and possibly creating traditions. On Saturday we drove to Helene's Apple Orchard in Merrill and took in all they had to offer. We enjoyed the bumpy hay ride, playing in the activity area, sipping fresh apple cider, nippling on a delicous apple turnover, petting the animals, and soaking in the gorgeous fall day! I'm thankful for such experiences!

Traeger checking out what these orange "balls" are all about.

Traeger thought feeding grass to the goats was pretty neat. He came out with a new vocabulary word too-goat (sounds like go)

Traeger and Mommy waiting to get on the hay ride.

Traeger enjoyed petting the orchard's friendly dog.

Daddy pushing Traeger on the tractor

Ending the afternoon with special apple treats was delightful. Traeger managed to get a molasses/oatmeal cookie out of the deal!

Braving the elements!

On Wednesdays Luke doesn't go into work until 12. So I typically get a work out in and Luke takes Traeger golfing or they just hang out together. Luke hasn't been golfing in a while because of our crazy schedules so he was itchin' to go today. After I exercised, we all went out to brave the elements and enjoy some family time. It was 43 degrees with a stiff wind and around the 7th hole a steady mist fell from the sky. Despite the fact that it was insanely cold, we had fun together and laughed a lot about how crazy we were! Apparently the owner of the golf course thought we were so crazy he gave us the golf cart free of charge and told Luke he would be surprised if we made it past the 4th hole. We proved him wrong and made it a full round!Traeger and Mommy at Hole 1
Traeger giving Daddy some advice on his putting

Traeger "driving" the cart!

The course is 5 minutes from our house but Traeger had enough and couldn't make it home before he fell asleep.