Apple Orchard

 So did you know I love fall?  Well, I do.  I really really do!  One of the things we enjoy doing as a family is visiting the Apple Orchard.  It's about a 45 minute drive from where we live but it's totally worth it.  There is so much for little kids to do there.  By far the thing Lauren enjoyed the most was petting the animals.  There was horses, goats, turkeys, chickens, and pigs but mainly she liked the goats.  Actually, she looovved them!  I'm pretty sure she would have brought one home if we let her.

She carefully fed one tiny piece of corn to each of them

...and sometimes her fingers.  

Daddy trying to teach her to open up her hand so they can eat more than one piece of corn.

There was also lots of places like this to take your picture...and this was the only one we could get her to cooperate in.  Ha!

Bull Riding 

Playing in the corn pool

And the best picture award of the day goes too.....

The giant slide was definitely STEEP.  Mommy freaking out steep!  Nick kept telling me, "Crystal, it's not that high once you get up there."  Yah right!!  And Lauren did end up loving it.  Well, the first time when she didn't know what was coming.  The second time around she started bawling before Nick made it all the way up this hill.  ha!  

The last thing we did was jump on this ginormous trampoline.  Lauren was really unsure about the whole thing.  Probably a combination of the scary slide + it being lunch time + really close to nap time.  

...and the reason I enjoy the Apple Orchard...freshly picked Iowa apples.  Now, off to make apple crisp...

Goodbye Mullet

Today Lauren got her first official haircut. Well, I suppose you could call it a haircut but really she just got a trim. Her hair is curly in the back but straight on top and just an all around mess. So we had it evened out and hopefully it will lay a little better. My sister Angela works for Bella Salon in Johnston (call her up if you need a cosmetology service she's ah-mazing) and Nick goes every 3 weeks to get a haircut (ya he's kind of obsessive about his hair...can't be too long you know). Most of the time Lauren and I just stay home but it's been awhile since I've had a haircut so we made it a family affair. Nick and I had appointments but we didn't have one for Lauren and were not planning on this being her first haircut but that's the advantage of having a sister in the cosmetology business. So I'm sorry these pictures are not the best quality...I wasn't prepared so these were taken with my phone (and of course I don't have a before shot).

Trying to instruct Lauren to look down

Listens pretty well

...but she'll do anything for fruit snacks

All done

Thanks Auntie Ang for the great haircut!

Nick Jr.

Nick and I went to my first ultrasound the other day for Baby Sea Turtle (aka Baby G #2) and are super excited to be welcoming a BOY into our family. This just means G2 has yet another nickname. Yep, Nick Jr. This will make for nickname number 3 and he isn't out of the womb yet. :) Before we left for the appointment we both guessed it was a boy. I don't know just a huntch I guess. Everything about this pregnancy has been completely different (I am well aware that can happen even if it was another girl). With Lauren my face also broke out like a 14 year old boy and I had no morning sickness, I really didn't feel pregnant at all until she started moving. This time, I was nauseous the entire first trimester but thankfully I didn't look like a middle school student. Oh the things those girl hormones can do to you! And, by the way, don't tell Nick, but I was secretly hoping for another little girl even though all my instincts were telling me it was a boy. Not because I didn't want a boy, actually I think boys are WAY more fun to shop for than girls but everything we have is for a girl. I don't know I guess I had sisters close in age to me and that's what I wanted for Lauren. Oh well, maybe next time. :)


We are praising the Lord that everything with the baby looked perfect! Pregnancy is definitely a time in my life where I feel totally out of control and helpless. Its not up to me how the baby forms or if it will be born with a disability. And even if it is born healthy there is no guarantee how long they will live, will we be able to raise them into adulthood? and see them get married and have children of their own? Nor is there a guarantee that Nick and I will be around to raise them. Such a scary thought (to me). I have to completely trust that God has a perfect plan for my life and our family and He will provide for our family and give us the perfect little person who He sees fit. I'm thankful that God has given us the opportunity to raise Lauren. We can't imagine not having her in our life and look forward to the other little person God has chosen for us :)

Now, the hard part begins... coming up with a name we agree on. We are open to suggestions... Lauren Amelia and..... ??

Byrd, Barney, and Baseball

For those of you who don’t know, I am a pretty big baseball fan. Well, not just any baseball, really just Chicago Cubs baseball. Earlier this week I heard two Chicago Cubs players were going to be in Des Moines playing at the Iowa Cubs (the Chicago Cubs Triple A team) on a rehab assignment. One of them being my favorite player Darwin Barney who bummed his knee while sliding into home plate.


And Marlon Byrd who was hit in the face by a pitch during this game

I really wanted to see them play but it was a Monday night, my husband was working, and I really didn't want to find a babysitter at a moments notice. Not wanting to wrestle a one year old by myself I called a few friends (also Cubs fans) to see if they wanted to go to the game. They did, score. Before we left for the game we found out it was $1 hot dog night. How hard could it be to entertain a one year old at her first baseball game? Can't be that hard... I'll bring snacks, she'll eat a hot dog and people watch. Lets just say things didn't go as planned.


When we first got there she was very interested in all the people and music. But she got bored pretty quickly. Soon she was getting up and down out of her seat, saying hi to the people all around us, trying to pick up peanut shells from the ground, sticking her hand in my pop trying to get the ice, accidentally grabbing the arm of the lady next to us (whom she shared an armrest with). Thankfully it was a slow night at the ball park and we just moved up a row where we couldn't bother anyone. Every child under the age of two is considered a "lap child" and get in for free. I can't imagine taking her and making her sit on my lap the entire time. Oh my.

Surprisingly we did make it to the 8th inning... Yay! Go Cubs!

Lauren is always quick to make friends. Here she is with her new friend Ryan.

The game wasn't a complete wash out. I did enjoy myself. I am thankful for good friends, a friendly daughter who acts like a one year old (however, I did have to practice lots of patience:), nice weather and summer baseball!

I'm sure we'll make it to another game.... in a year or two.... and with Daddy :)

Baby Sea Turtle

Nick and I are excited to announce that we are expecting our second child. And Lord willing we will be ringing in the new year 2012 as a family of 4. G2, also known as Baby Sea Turtle, (more on that later) is due around December 30th making me 13 weeks pregnant. We are truly thankful for the blessing of children and think Lauren will be a great big sister. After being 9 months pregnant in August with Lauren I am thrilled to be due in the winter and entering my third trimester in the fall. Hopefully that means less swelling? We shall see....

Unlike my pregnancy with Lauren (no morning sickness, no nauseousness) this one has been filled with exhaustion and nauseousness. Maybe that is a sign it's a boy? Nick would like to think so but we will be thrilled regardless. I am very much aware that every pregnancy is different but I am looking forward to the start of the second trimester and hope to be welcoming back my energy and appetite soon.

So back this Baby Sea Turtle thing...when I first found out I was pregnant with Lauren I took my first ultra sound picture to my sister Angela to tell her the good news. Well, at the time I was only 10 weeks pregnant and an ultra sound picture looks nothing more than a white blob. I thought it looked like a little peanut but she thought it looked like a seahorse. Which then coined the name... Baby Seahorse.

Look like a seahorse to you?

Lauren at 3 months

So when I told Angela that we were expecting again she immediately started thinking of a sea creature for G2. And although she doesn't think him/her necessarily looks like a sea turtle in the picture below:

we have to continue on with the theme... every child will have a "sea" nickname. Weird? Maybe. But they do swim in water their first 9 months.... :) AND one of my favorite movies of all time is Finding Nemo...which is why we will call him/her Crush. Pretty rockin' nickname, right? It's okay to be jealous :) ... We look forward to seeing our little one in a onesie like this one day. And when Angela gets married Aunt Crystal will look forward to nicknaming her children! :)

With all jokingness aside, we would really appreciate your prayers for a safe and easy pregnancy; a healthy (full term) baby and an easy adjustment for big sister Lauren.

Workin' At The Car Wash

Summer is in full swing...and at our house that means our drive way becomes a car wash. There are many pro's to this:

1:) We don't have to pay $7 per car at the automatic car wash
2:) It cools you down on a hot day
3:) An old ice cream bucket, soap bubbles, and a wash cloth can keep a one year old entertained for a VERY long time.

Here are a few pictures of Lauren helping daddy wash the car.

Lauren has many silly faces these days but the "say cheese" face is definitely her favorite. It is called the "say cheese" face because whenever you tell her to "say cheese" this is what happens. Although, these days, we no longer have to "say cheese". She pretty much does this face whenever you have a camera pointing in her general direction. This day I believe I said something totally boring like, "Hey Lauren, Look at Momma!"

Here's a good example of how an old plastic bucket with soapy water can keep a toddler busy. Her slide was very dirty.... :)

Sneaky Sneaky

So this morning while I was putting a load of laundry in the wash I turn around to this:

Lauren had pushed a chair from the kitchen table over to the oven where I had a fresh batch of blueberry muffins cooling and helped herself to one. Mind you, she had just eaten one for breakfast 15 minutes before but apparently she was still hungry. Don't worry the oven nor the muffins were hot.

Here you can see her standing on the chair asking me to take the paper off. Such an ornery girl... but they must have been pretty tasty.