pregnancy lately and other things

I'm 16 (or is it 17?) weeks now, and things are moving right along.

Still feeling pretty blah right when I wake up in the morning. This lasts for a half hour or so and seems to get better if I sip on some coffee or munch on a granola bar.

Fatigue sets in in the afternoon. Lately I've been snoozing for part of Evie's afternoon nap which helps get me through the rest of the day. AND she's been napping longer than an hour these days. Win/win.

In addition to a lot of walkng, I'm able to get to the gym about twice a week which always makes me feel better. I'm hoping I can keep this up as I get further along (and bigger).

Cravings this pregnancy include: cheeseburgers (I cannot get enough of the $2 Frisch's burgers, yum), crisp salads with ranch, rice, fruit, all the fixin's from KFC or other fried chicken places, like mashed potatoes, green beans, biscuits and mac n cheese.

What else have we been up to?

We play outside in the sunshine. 

We dress up fancy for Easter. 

We collect Easter eggs and other things.

We play on our new slide. In our jammies. 

We snuggle with Daddy. 

We go to the park. 

We drink smoothies. 

We take swim lessons. 

We make silly faces with mommy. 

Evie has something to share

We let Evie in on a little secret. At first she was shocked. Then she was nervous. Now she's warming up to the idea. 

In case you missed it on Facebook, it's true. We're thrilled to announce that Evie will be a big sister in early October. I'm about 15 weeks along now and am feeling relatively well. So far this pregnancy has been a lot easier than it was with Ev (knock on wood. and then knock again.) But seriously, even though I've been suffering from extreme bouts of fatigue and some nausea/dizziness when I first wake up in the morning, I really don't want to complain since my first pregnancy included seven straight weeks of 24/7 flu-like symptoms. 

I can hardly fathom that I get to experience the heart-bursting love that I felt with Evie once again; that I am creating a new little person that will steal my heart times one hundred and then some; that this new life will fill a space in our family we never knew existed.

If you can't tell we can hardly wait to add another little to our clan in the fall. Thanks for sharing in our excitement!

little red wagon

Anyone else about sick of this winter weather?

We are.

But today temps hit almost 60, so we headed outdoors.  My grandpa got Evie a red Flyer wagon for Christmas, but we hadn't really had a reason to use it until today. I think it's safe to say Evie enjoyed it.

We so enjoyed the warm weather today. But, surprise surprise, I hear more snow and cold air is headed our way tomorrow.

An update: no more monthly updates

It's true. After 15 months of Evie updates, I've decided to give it a rest. I came to the realization that I probably wouldn't have the time, energy, or motivation to keep up with updates this long with any future children, and to be honest, I feel like now that we've hit 15 months, major monthly milestones are no longer that "major".

That said, I am going to try to post more photos, stories and other happenings as they occur because I do want to continue documenting Evie's toddler years and life here in the Ytterberg household as we know it; just not with the pressure of creating monthly updates. 

Here are a slew of pics from my iPhone from this past month.

Evie has really enjoyed playing with and stacking blocks lately. She concentrates so hard and can even consistently stack up to 9 of these little guys!

Some days when we go to the park she barely smiles. I know she loves it there because she kicks and screams when we leave. Must just really soak in the new sights and sounds. 

Love this outfit. So sporty. 

Little Miss Picky has had some major eating challenges lately, but at least she's happy while chucking her broccoli to the floor. 

I watched my friend Holly's daughter, Adeline the other day. I got nothing done with these busy girls, but it was fun watching these future pals play together. 

There's a smile at the park. "Driving" the choo-choo. The same choo-choo she bumped her chin on this week. 

I was tickling Evie on the couch. I've been showing her how to "tickle" daddy. Her tickle is more of a slap in the face. Daddy still fakes a laugh.

Evie likes to say "sit" and then plop down on my lap or a chair. 

This face. 

Loves this wagon, but doesn't quite understand why her butt doesn't fit.  

Mom, you don't mind if I rearrange the furniture and use it as a chair do you?

My love. 

We put her to bed on Friday night and she woke up with a shiner on Saturday. 

Ouch.

Month 15 Update

This really is a sad excuse for a blog considering I only ever post when the Evster turns another month old. Nonetheless, here I am again with her 15 month update for any of you who actually decide to read these...

Little Ev, you are getting so smart. You understand so, so much and are learning more and more every day. I feel like our relationship has finally moved beyond me simply being your caregiver day in and day out. We laugh. We play. You communicate with me. You're expressing yourself. You get me. I get you. 

You're energetic. You play hard. All. day. long. Some days you prefer playing alone, which might involve pushing your toy car into every piece of furniture in the house, stacking all of your stuffed animals in a pile on the chair, or pretending to cook a delicious meal in your kitchen set. Other days mommy has to be by your side, which means I end up beneath a pile of penguins, bears, Elmos and Winnie the Poohs, or tasting the delicious pretend pot of tea you made with a plastic knife for the millionth time in a row. 

You're a thinker. I love how you study people and things. You take your time to decide whether or not you like him/her/it and then examine it/them more before you warm up. You will stare people down at the grocery store, and you are so serious most of the time when playing alone with your toys as though you are putting in a full day's work. 

You're particular. From food texture and messy hands to whether or not you want to put your shoes on, you certainly like things a certain way. For instance, when you notice mommy doesn't have her socks on you immediately come running to me with them, as if you were saying, "duh, mom you forgot about these." Or if your own sock or slipper falls off, you come running to me quickly with it in your hand because it apparently really bothers you to have one off and one on. 

You're lovable. And finally, this kissing stage you're going through right now is the best. Most days I will be in the kitchen doing something and you will go into the play room for a few minutes, come out and kiss my leg, go back into play room, and then a couple of minutes later come back out to kiss my leg. This goes on for a while, as though you need to reassure me that you do love me. You also love to kiss your stuffed animals, among other things like canned foods, puzzles and the TV remote. This month we learned how to blow kisses too-- heart melting. 

You understand a wide range of words now which is helpful. I can tell you to put your toys away or to go grab a book and you enthusiastically comply. You say some words, including ba-ba-ba (baby), duck, dog, hot, mum, dad,  and dat (that). You also can neigh like a horse and roar like a lion in addition to dog, cat and cow sounds. 

Lastly, I need to mention a proud parent moment. Last night as I was counting down the minutes until getting you ready for bed time, I sat in the play room with you as I scanned emails and read Facebook statuses. (Yay me). Anyway, I looked around and you weren't in the play room anymore. This isn't unusual by any means, but when I turned around to look for you in the kitchen I noticed you were at the TOP OF THE STAIRS and walking into your bedroom. Whoops. I'm glad you're a good climber, but seriously, not mommy's proudest moment. 

Month 14 Update

14 Months!

Evie, you've really been letting your personality shine lately. I look at you a lot of times and think, "Where did my baby go?!"  I think much of this is due to the fact that you are communicating so much with us.

Although you aren't quite picking up on the sign language I've been trying, you definitely have your own way of telling us what you want. Pointing, while annoying a lot of the time because you are literally sticking your mini pointer in my face, has been SO helpful.

So now if you want a drink of water or something to eat, you will go over to the table and point at your water bottle or a banana while whining and grunting.  Or I can ask you if you want more to eat and you simply shake your head no.

You also really love animals. Books are your favorite right now, so pretty much any book you rip down from your book shelf is about an animal (or Santa for some reason, weird).  Dogs, ducks and cats are favorites and almost always receive a big kiss on the page. You are also woofing a lot when you see dogs now, both real and pretend. Squirrels in the yard also get a woof, so I guess we need to work on that. Cows get a "mmmmmm." And while you can't quack, you do say "duck" a lot when spotted in books, pointing and saying, "duh, duh."

Your recent cuddles have been much appreciated. You've never been a snuggly baby but all of sudden you want held and kissed pretty frequently.....usually at the most inconvenient times, but hey, I'll take it.

You make me laugh a lot. I realize it's only because I am your mom that I think you are hilarious, but that's what I'm here for right? You play peek a boo with us. You dance to music. You chase us. You make the silliest "that's amazing" face. You hold your nose when I say "you're stinky." You're a funny, funny girl.

It's amazing how much you understand of what I say like "diaper" or "daddy is home" which always gets a big grin. The other evening I started reciting the book I Love You Through and Through and you ran over behind your basket of toys to get it for me to read to you!

You must watch my actions way more than I realized. You know what to push on my iPhone to make it light up, you put clothes into your drawers, and the other day I caught you picking up a piece of lint off of the floor and putting it in the trash can (later that day I also found your water bottle in there!). Daddy and I fear that you too will have a detail-oriented, type A personality, just like us!

Sleep is also improving. You make it through the entire night most nights, or at least until 4 or 5am in which case I just go in and nurse you back to sleep. We put you down between 6 and 7pm, and you wake for the day between 7 and 8, which is fantastic because I get a few hours to myself in the morning to work, read, clean up or get ready.  We are also in a weird place with naps. Some days you take just one if you wake up in the morning around 8. It's nice having more flexibility in the day to run errands without a melt down, but I think our 1 nap days seem to really drag, especially in the winter.

You're such a peanut and keep me laughing all day long!