Happy Australia Day!

So, Australia Day was on Saturday, and we celebrated by going out for Chinese that evening, which was delicious, but not as delicious as the Aussie burger I enjoyed on Sunday evening. I shared this joyful tradition with Nick and his parents, although all three of them were too sissy to try it the right way - egg, beetroot, and pineapple (mine also included cheese, avocado, tomato and lettuce, it doesn't get much better than that!). Advance Australia Fair!

This morning we had our second Doctor's visit and everythings seems to be just fine. It is always such a relief to hear the baby's heartbeat. I am now 13.5 weeks, and am a member of the second trimester club, although I'm still waiting for a day that I feel fantastic. I really can't complain too much, I am able to do everything I want to, as long as I take a moment to rest every once in awhile. My mornings are wonderful, but then after lunch things seem to go downhill until I am so excited to go to bed at night just so I can wake up feeling good again. I am able to eat a wider variety of foods again (like orange juice, vegetables, and eggs), which is exciting. Ellie knows that there is a baby in Mom's tummy, but I don't think she has any kind of a clue what that really means.

Ellie amazes me with the things she learns. She loves to play with play-doh and told me the other day that she had made a 'rock'. Her favorite meal is noodles and she requests them every day for lunch and dinner. She is always carrying a book and I hear all day long, "read it?" I love being her mom.

Beans, Beans...

Today I am grateful for my domestic husband. Over the weekend he processed 14 pints of pinto beans. I agree with him that it is definitely nice to have them available to use, but so far, I haven't found the movitation that he has to actually get it done. I married myself a wonderful man.

We celebrated my mom's birthday yesterday in good 'ol Genola. We love going home and spending time with the family. Ellie loves playing in Grandma's playroom and joining the 'chasing cousins' game. We are so glad to live close to family. Nick made a delicious pot of barbecue beans (with above mentioned beans) - did I mention it's nice to have a husband that enjoys being in the kitchen?

Also this last week I had the pleasure of meeting with some of my favorite people - my old roommates - for our book group. Nick thinks that it is just an excuse to get together. Well, okay, it is... but I'll have you all know that we DO actually discuss the book, and actually have intelligent conversation. It is always a boost for me. I love my girls.

And today it is snowy outside, and I am just so so grateful that I am a stay-home mom, for many reasons, but today, the main reason I love being at home is so that I don't have to face the frightful weather! I think I'm about ready for spring...

Ellie's favorite hiding place.

Same Old

There isn't much to say this week - just ordinary things going on. We took Ellie to get her 2 year photos taken, which she didn't appreciate very much. However, the staff at Portrait Innovations were very good with her and coaxed a few good smiles out of her. I would recommend them, we were pleased with our experience there.

Also, Ellie had her 2 year doctor's visit. She is still in the 2nd percentile for weight, and 84th percentile for her height. Tall and skinny - I'm sure it'll catch up with her someday...

Ellie decided that this looked like a good spot to read a book:

Happy Birthday Ellie!

This last week, Nick and I were again reminded just how much schedules have changed since our single days (or maybe it is the fact that sleep has become much more valuable). For New Years Eve we celebrated with some friends at Ray and Geoff's house, but were home in time to be asleep when the new year actually rolled in. What party animals.

Ellie and I have had colds this week, and thus have spent a lot of time just chillin' on the couch, watching the mess build up in the house. We are both feeling better now, thank goodness.

Ellie turned 2 on Saturday. That has been the fastest two years of my life, hands down. We celebrated with family, and Ellie just ate up all of the attention. She got a tricycle, which is too big for her now, but hopefully she'll be able to reach the pedals come summer. Right now, she's pretty happy just climbing up the back and ringing the bell. I was busy filming the actual blowing of the candles, so I didn't get any photos of Ellie with her cake, but here is a photo of her enjoying the cake batter:

And here she's eating the frosting:
And here is the finished cake.

Funny when it came time to actually eat the cake, she was not so interested - she only ate a few bites of ice cream. Speaking of blowing out the candles, Nick instructed her to get closer to the flame, which she did, and which also singed her eyelashes. Poor baby. Hopefully we'll get video of it on the blog.