Joe Meets "Hop Hop"

I took Joseph to meet the Easter Bunny at Flatirons Mall over the weekend. He responded a little better than we met Santa because he would wave and say "Hop Hop" when we were a safe distance away. Jud even got in on the picture trying to help Joseph sit by the bunny.

The size of, but not a lemon.

At 14 weeks baby is now the size of a lemon! From head to rump he/she should be about 3.5" - 4" long. We had our NT Scan (Nuchal translucency screening) last week which assess our baby's risk of having Down syndrome (DS) and some other chromosomal abnormalities as well as major congenital heart problems. The results came back very good so we seem to be in the clear and we got an "extra" ultrasound".  Our next ultrasound is scheduled for May 8 and we will hopefully get to find out the gender at that appointment.

Since the weather has warmed up and we can be outside more often Joseph got a new backyard toy. He also loves to chase the cat or play with rocks in the backyard. We still go to the park because he loves to swing.

Playing @ the park.

Playing @ the park.

Swinging @ the park.

New backyard climber!

Joe likes to color!

We finally got a nice day to go to the St Patrick's Day parade. Darren & Julia joined us. It was very crowded, but we were able to get an ok spot.

We're looking forward to Easter in a couple of weeks. Between the Easter Vigil Service (where I'll finally be able to receive the sacraments and will be fully Catholic), Joe being able to hunt Easter eggs and see the Easter bunny and spending time with family it should be a really eventful, fun weekend!

Comeback

I took a break from the blog for a few months, but I've missed having the blog to refer to and post pictures on so I'm restarting it this month. I may post more often than once a month depending on what's happening.

Ruggs and kids on his birthday in January.

Ruggs and I on his birthday in January.

We have some big news! Ruggs and I are expecting again. It looks like Joseph will be a big brother! My due date is Sept. 19 - exactly 1 month before Joe's 2nd birthday. We've already had our first Dr's appt/ultrasound and we're due for another ultrasound on the 13th. We won't find out the sex until the beginning of May. I've finally made it through the first trimester and I'm looking forward to the next few months of feeling good again!

Baby #2 on the way!

Joseph is amazing. We're finally feeling better after being sick for what seemed like 2 full months. He's sleeping well (12 hours at night and 2 hour naps), eating well (he'll eat just about anything) and learning rapidly! He knows his alphabet, the sounds they make, numbers 1-10, all animals noises, several signs, words, songs and he loves to dance or play outside. We attend a music class, Music Together, on Fridays for preschool kids and he has the best time! We've been stuck inside a lot due to the wind, but we've both got Spring fever and can't wait for the warmer weather!

Playing in the snow in February.

We turned our front room into a play room. It's nice to have the fireplace on cold days!

His first bowl of ice cream. Loved it SO much, he licked the bowl!

He likes to play with boxes. It also gives us something fun to do on days we have to stay inside!

 He loves to sing!

Jud is doing well. He had an fantastic time in band last fall and finally feels like he has time to breathe. He's already looking forward to hitting it hard again this summer! He's working on ideas to earn money this spring/summer. He's pretty motivated and a great salesman (not unlike his Dad), so we'll see what he comes up with. He also got braces in January - which he had been looking forward to for a long time!

Jud in the car right after getting his braces on.

Sydney is finishing up her last few months of high school. She's working fast and furious on her final Capstone project (Bollywood dance) and making some final decisions about college. She's decided to attend CU in Boulder this fall. She's excited to get out on her own and spread her wings a little! We'll be sad to see her go, but the new baby and Joseph has her pretty motivated to come home often. :)

Sis and Joe at Christmas.

Darren is also doing well. He's enrolled at Metro and likes his teachers and classes. We're proud of the strides he's making! Though he's busy with college life, he plays basketball with Ruggs in the winter and softball with him in the summer so he gets to see him about once a week.

Darren on his 20th birthday in January.

 Coming Up Next: We have the NT scan/ultrasound next week so more baby pictures to come...

Joseph Turns One!

Joseph had an amazing first birthday! He got lots of new things to play with from family and friends at his birthday party.

His face in this picture is priceless. He's amazed at his monkey cupcake cake!

The amazing monkey cupcake cake.

Happy Birthday Joe!

On his actual birthday we enjoyed a play date with friends at an indoor play place called Little Monkey Bizness. We then got to have a quiet dinner at home.

Partaking in a little homemade birthday applesauce cupcake at Little Monkey Bizness with our friends.

At Little Monkey Bizness on his 1st birthday.

A birthday kiss from a sweet boy!

I'm 1 year old!

Joseph is such a big little man! He's moved from playing like a baby to playing like a little boy. We're pretty sure he's the smartest little boy ever. :)

He likes to watch Baby Einstein DVDs. The shapes and sounds are engaging!

 

Joe likes to play with trucks.

He can say a few words, like "uh oh". He also knows a few signs: "all done", "more", "eat", "milk".

He loves balloons!

He loves fingerplays, songs and games! 

 

 

He likes to play with anything that has animals!
 

He likes to help Dad play guitar! (And he's becoming a pro at standing!)

 

He found his tongue! He sticks it out and BLOWS!

 

 He's practicing his walking...

 

We went to City Park and enjoyed a beautiful fall day with our friends Carrie and Jack.

 

We had a small practice run with the costume at our New Mom's Group.

Joe really loves being outside. We've tried to enjoy as many of the beautiful 70 degree fall days as possible!

 

We took JT to a pumpkin patch and petting zoo at Rock Creek Farms in Broomfield. He loved seeing all the animals!

 

We recently had his 1 year pictures taken by a friend of ours at this very pumpkin patch (on a different day). They turned out great and we're so excited to share them! Look for them really soon! ...