Dear Baby,

Your baby blanket is completed, your clothes and blankets washed and put away, the house is scrubbed clean, every cabinet and closet organized, the garden is planted, we are safely past our Aflac effective date, and we are ready for your arrival! The Doctor says mom's measurements show you're close and could come any time, but who really knows what will happen. We are ready and waiting anxiously for the time you finally make your debut into this world.

I thought that having already gone through the pregnancy and birth experience would make the second baby seem more realistic, but I was wrong. The thought of my body accommodating a small

child that will soon be joining our family is just as unfathomable as it was the first time around. I have had the typical worries most moms do when adding a second child, such as feeling guilty my attention will be taken away from the first and if I will love the second as much as the first. I've been told those worries will disappear as soon as the baby arrives and I believe it. It's just funny how my mind can't understand it yet. I have been craving anything fruity and cold, chewing ice, and the smell of windex. It must be the nesting instincts, but I can't get enough of the smell of my green windex as I make every glass surface in the house shine.

We took some pictures outside this last Sunday before church so I can also rid myself of some of the guilt of not taking belly shots this pregnancy. I have a five month shot and a nine month. I look at these and think, am I really carrying that around? How am I doing that?

Hopefully it won't be long before we post Emerson's little brother on here instead of my belly. I set up a trampoline in the backyard today and if he doesn't show up soon, I'm going to go jump on it!

Giving the baby a leaf

Picking mommy flowers. Oh, I'm going to miss these little hands!

A Two-Year-Old Among Us!

I'm a little late, but I wanted to recognize our little man's second
birthday before the actual birth-day of our second son and I am
consumed with diapers, breastfeeding, and keeping a two-year-old
entertained, all while not wanting to move.
I have discovered already how having a two-year-old child can be a
bipolar experience with the extremes of both negative and positive
behavior. We find joy and entertainment in his growing imagination and
hilarious interpretation of the world, and yet sorrow and
exhaustion in such energetic tantrums and confusion. He keeps us on our toes, but we sure do love this little guy!

A few things I love about Emerson, a.k.a. Mr., Sir, Sirskie,Ferris . . .

-He absolutely loves wearing a tie, no matter if it's on a dress shirt, t-shirt, PJs, or with his robe.
-He loves passing out his toy instruments to whomever is around and jamming together.
-I love watching him fill up his toy trucks or and push them around the house as fast ashe can.
-I also love watching him play with his animals. There is always a mommy and/or daddy (depending on availability) and a
baby, and they usually always find a little spot to go "night night."
-I will miss finding little plastic animals or other toy "guys" in my bed, in my drawers, the cabinets, or other random places.
There have been several occasions where I have slipped my foot into my shoe only to find that some giraffe or other animal
has been using it as a car or bed.
-He loves wearing hats.
-Many mornings he will bring me my robe and slippers, which he calls "pink shoes" and insist that I wear them to breakfast,
even if I have just come inside from walking in 30 degree weather. He takes care of mommy.
-His creativity expands every day. He found a small bucket that has used as a hat, a drum, a dinosaur foot, a stool, a
megaphone, and I'm sure more that I don't know about.
-He wants his daddy when he's hurt and mommy when he's scared.
-He loves his family members and friends, and is constantly asking about different people.
-He is so curious about the world. I am answering, "what is that?" and "why" ALL day long.
-He loves learning new things. He is great at colors and shapes, but not as much at letters and numbers.
-He is an outgoing little boy and will walk up to anyone to say "hello."
-Sometimes the way he says "hello" sounds like he has an English accent.
-He loves his nursery class at church. One Sunday after the first meeting, he spotted his teachers, a married couple, and before we could catch him, he ran up to them. He grabbed each of their hands to make them stand up and walked them to class.
-He is not a picky eater and has a cute round belly to prove it. The only thing he has ever refused is dry lettuce, but if it has
dressing he will take it.
-I'm excited to see him become a big brother. I told him I bet the baby wished he could play with Emerson and his toys. He set
a toy boat on my belly and said, "Der go baby."
-He makes me get down on the ground with my pregnant stomach to play whatever animal or dinosaur he has in mind. He
corrects me if I don't portray the animal appropriately.
-His imagination, silly voices, and sound effects keep us laughing all the time.