The Lion King

On Saturday (Jan 14th) we were able to watch Madelyn in the morning for a couple of hours. It was a lot of fun! Shelly and Ryan went out to breakfast with a couple friends and Madelyn and Bishop played together! They love each other so much and it's so fun to watch them interact, especially now since Madelyn is mobile and can crawl around after Bishop.

One thing I noticed is Bishop loves bringing Madelyn HER toys, but he has a hard time when she wants to play with one of his toys. I was hoping Sisbro would be able to use all of Bishop's toys....but Sisbro might need some of his/her own toys for Bishop to bring to him/her! :)

That afternoon, my mom, sister, Luke and I went to The Lion King at The Orpheum! We had front row/center seats and it was amazing!!! I had no idea what to expect, but the costumes were unbelievable and I think my mouth was hanging open the entire time because I was in awe of the performance. Luke was able to get us the tickets from a co-worker of his...it makes all the difference in the world to have good (or should I say great) seats!!! Meanwhile, Bishop and papa were playing at our house, so everyone had a great time!!

Bishop's Gala

Bishop had his first "Gala" on Tuesday (Jan 10th). It was a holiday concert and it was so fun! We had been trying to practice his song at home "It's Cold Outside", but everytime we started singing it, he would yell "NO" and start singing the ABCD's. His teacher, Courtney, said he did the same thing at school. Regardless, it was a stitch to watch the kids, especially the young ones. Bishop was more interested in looking out the window and playing on the computer (they were in the older classroom), than he was participating in the singing or dancing. His friend, Matteo, danced for everyone though, which was really cute.

Bishop was more interested in playing on the computer than singing with his class! :)

Grandma was able to join us, because after that gala we had Luke's holiday party, so she hung out with Bishop, while we went to PinStripes. It was a fun night! PinStripes is a place in Edina that has bowling, bocce ball and it's perfect for group events. We played bocce ball and it was fun to meet Luke's coworkers, who I hear so much about.

36 Weeks!

I am 36 weeks today! Wow-it's hard to believe I had Bishop at this point in my pregnancy and things are going so much more smoothly this time around.

I had a Dr's appointment this morning...my blood pressure is still great (thank goodness) and my Dr said that I'm progressing at a very normal rate for 36 weeks. I'm about 50% effaced and I have many mixed emotions about this pregnancy being over. Don't get me wrong--I am very excited to be done being pregnant and to meet this baby, especially to find out if it's a girl or boy. I worry about Bishop and how he'll handle the transition, although he has always transitioned well, so I'm hoping this is the same.

We're getting things ready...the pack and play is set up in our room-the carseat bases need to be installed in our cars and the clothes (onesies, sleepsacks and blankets) need to be washed.

More than anything I am relieved to have had such a healthy pregnancy!!

We've been trying to talk to Bishop a little bit about the baby coming, but I don't want to go overboard and make his anxious about it. We had pizza and made cookies tonight and he talked about how babies can't eat pizza or cookies and then he listed people who CAN eat cookies and he mentioned Great Grandpa, it was so cute. He has just recently started talking about Great Grandpa and since he has 2 of them, we're not entirely sure which one he's talking about, but it doesn't matter, it's cute that he mentions him, especially while eating cookies.

The countdown is on....I can't wait to meet this baby and get some good cuddling time in!!

Bishop update

I feel like all I do is update on what we are doing and not so much what's going on day to day in our lives.

Bishop has been very fun lately! He is talking a lot these days, which makes things very fun (and easier)!! He is very curious and is asking questions, mainly about where people are... "where mommy go"? "Where Papa go"? "bye bye?" It's so fun to hear him talking more and more.

He absolutely loves his teacher, Courtney and he asks about her all the time. He usually brings her up at mealtime and he usually asks if she's going to come over...."Courtney come over?"

Bishop has also starting using his imagination....as he's been talking about "froggies in the wa-wa"...although Froggies could be misinterpreted by someone else as a bad word! :)

Bishop's new favorite activity is playing in the "wa-wa" at the sink. He can pull a chair over and get up to turn the water on. He makes a mess, but is so happy and he is content for quite awhile, playing by himself. I can't believe he can pull a chair over to the sink--he has to get it through a doorway and the chairs are HEAVY!!!

This past weekend he really got into cooking/baking. We had the oven off and he was making us lunch!

Playing at the sink

Bathtime with Bubbles

Another highlight the past couple of weeks has been that Bishop has been going potty on the "big potty" at school more often....he even went poopy on the potty one day last week! He was so proud and excited...he got up and gave Courtney a high five--she said he was SO proud and it was the cutest thing. It was the first thing he told me when he got home that night...... "I go poopy on the potty"!

So....this past weekend we decided to try an "underwear" day where Bishop got to wear underwear all day and try going on the potty. He wasn't as excited to go at home and when he started refusing to try we decided not to push it anymore. We would ask and then 1 minute later he would go in his underwear.....but he would immediately run to the bathroom, so at least he knows where to go when he's wet! :) I had thought it was early and with the baby coming, I didn't want to push anything, but I also didn't want to hold him back, if he was interested and wanted to go.

Unfortunately, Bishop got a little stomach bug in the middle of the night, Wednesday night. He woke up around 11:30...crying and screaming and he had thrown up in his bed. We got up and I comforted him and we hung out and he did get sick a few more times......when he was finally ready to relax and go back to bed, I slept with him on the floor, next to his crib for awhile and then put him back in his crib. He was fine the next day and has been completely fine ever since. We are so thankful it was just a one time incident. It was so hard to see him get sick--and he was scared and upset, as he didn't really understand what was going on.

We are so excited for Bishop to be a big brother. He loves babies, although I am nervous about not being able to give him the attention I have been used to giving him. I know it's a very normal and healthy thing for all of us to go through and don't get me wrong, Bishop doesn't get EVERYTHING he asks for, but it will be different that he's not my "baby" anymore and I won't always be able to get him what he asks for right away.

St Cloud Holiday Inn

Last Thursday night Luke and I both had to be on the road in St Cloud, so I brought Bishop up and we were able to go swimming! Bishop loved the water and there was a kiddie pool that was perfect for him!

Rich and Eileen were able to come over and help out and then we all went out for dinner. It was a great get away for the night.

Here are some pictures of Bishop in the kiddie pool--it was perfect for him!

Daddy took Bishop in the big pool so he could go under water and try "swimming". He also jumped in off the side of the pool

It was nice to expose Bishop to the water again, as we don't go swimming all that often. It was a great night!!

Children's Museum

We went to the Children's Museum on Monday, Jan 2nd, since we both had the day off for New Years! Bishop had been to the Children's Museum when he was just over a year old (I think he was 14 or 15 months then), so we figured he'd REALLY appreciate it now that he's a little older.

He had an absolute ball! We became members, so we can go more often. He loved every room we went into and every activity he did. The best part of the Children's Museum is when you have to leave a certain area and he gets upset.....it doesn't last for long, because as soon as we get to the next room, he's as happy as can be!

He loved grocery shopping! 

 He is definitely taking after his dad in the art department! He loves coloring and all his art projects at school!

 Driving the bus

 Paining on the easel

 The water stations

Bishop is at such a fun age right now! He has always enjoyed doing new things and no matter what we do or where we take him, he's having fun. He truly LOVES life and it is so fun to see him enjoy everything he does. I feel very lucky and blessed to be his Mom and to be able to introduce him to all sorts of new things!

New Years Day

The Vikings played the Bears on New Years Day, so we hosted my family for a rivalry game. Shelly, Ryan and now Madelyn are Bears fans, while the rest of us are Vikings fans....although there wasn't much to cheer for at all this year, but it was still fun to get together!

Poor Madelyn had an ear infection!!

Luke's parents always celebrate New Years Day with their friends and this year the get together was in Eden Prairie, so they stopped by afterwards to hang out for a bit. Here they are all playing the "hand game", where everyone puts their hand on top of the pile and the bottom hand keeps going to the top. Bishop thought it was a pretty fun game!

 Bishop talking on his "phones"!

Like I said in my last post--we are so excited for 2012 and all the wonderful things it will bring!!