Happy Halloween

We had a ward Halloween party today. Anna dressed up as Elmo. When we were looking for a costume, I was looking for fairies and Anna was looking at Elmo ONLY. She wouldn't let me pick up anything but Elmo so we decided that was her only option. It turned out pretty cute too. She wouldn't wear the head piece much but when she did, it looked great. We didn't get very good pictures but we'll have more to come soon.

This afternoon we worked on our pumpkins as a family. Anna painted for the first time ever. I have never seen her so calm and happy. I guess she was just in her element.

She was really happy all afternoon.

She even painted with two paint brushes.

What a masterpiece!

Josh and I carved a witch flying on a broom and it turned out really well. When we lit it up, Anna thought it was really fun.

When she stood up, she had a paint brush stuck to her bottom.

It took a long, long bath to get this girl clean.

Cute, huh?

Josh and I made some delicious caramel apples after Anna went to bed. It was part of our date night and I think they turned out really well. The best part was how yummy they were. Happy Halloween!!

Boo!

How to make a cake, Anna style....
Pour everything Mommy gives you in a bowl.
Add a pinch of this and a pinch of that. This is the important part: use the mixers and turn up the speed to full blast when no one's looking.

Let Daddy have a turn. We have to share, Mommy said so.

Stir the frosting to make ghosts.

And don't forget to clean up after. This is the fun part, obviously.

We had a great Saturday. After going to the petting zoo, we decided that we needed to do a Halloween activity. We made a delicious chocolate cake and decorated it Halloween style. Anna put all of the ingredients in, mixed it, and did the dishes afterwards. :-) Her new favorite thing is to stand at the sink and play with the water. It makes for one big mess and one really happy girl.

The cake was really yummy, and we had a great time as a family.

We bought Anna some new sunglasses. We had to pry them off her eyes before we went in church today. I think she's obsessed.

CHEESE!!

I Wish....

I sure do wish that this is what I was doing right now. I wish Josh were eating all of my ice chips and that I were in a hospital gown waiting for my little one to hurry up and get here. This picture was from Anna's birth. I've been trying to walk like crazy to help him come sooner. I don't know if it's working but at least I know I'm trying all I can. My baby widget says I only have TWO days left. I have a feeling that my due date is going to come and go. My doctor is going to be out of town all next week too. Good timing huh? I have an induction scheduled for October 25th. I have come to grips with the fact that I might actually make it to that date. Josh keeps telling me, "you never know", which is true but I still think he's not coming soon. It's amazing how you can wait for nine months and then at the end, every minute seems to count.
We're trying to wait patiently. Today has actually been really nice. I went walking for a few miles this morning with my friends, had a play date, relaxed at home, and I'm still in my sweats. I have no intention of changing either. I'm almost 40 weeks pregnant so I have to milk it for what it's worth, right? We're just so excited for him to get here. Anna and I have been having really good days lately. We only have a few left of it being just Mommy-Daughter. I think she'll like the change though. Anyways, that's what's happening at the Lee household. We're happy and excited and feeling great!

39 Weeks

Watch me progress...
This is me at 17 weeks. This is 22 weeks.

This is 32 weeks.

And here I am today at 39 weeks.

We're excited to have only one week left. I don't think I'll go this week. I think I'll have him right after I hit my 40 week mark. I've been really surprised at how the "nesting" factor has played into this pregnancy. I didn't really get that with Anna. With this baby, I've spent months getting ready for him. Every corner of my house has been cleaned out. We've spent countless Saturdays reorganizing everything, hanging shelves, having things repaired, etc. I think the difference is that I know what it is like to have a newborn, so I feel like if I don't get it done now, it won't get done for months to come. Josh asked me one day, "You know that life will go on after he's born, right?" I quickly told him that it wouldn't. It will take several weeks to get back into a normal routine where I will feel like I can handle things. I'm just imagining it being harder having two kids too. I think running errands might be out of the picture for a while. Thus, I have been "nesting" like crazy for months, trying to prepare for when he gets here. I can gladly say that I think I'm actually done with everything! I honestly didn't think it would happen. I am just watching the clock now and waiting.

On to other news, Anna has rediscovered the playground. She kind of got bored with it for a while. Once she discovered the monkey bars and the hills that she can run down, life is wonderful again. She gets SO excited to go and play. It's really fun to watch. We had a picnic at the playground last night, but she wanted nothing to do with the food. It was all just play time to her. This first picture is of her running down the hill, holding her arms out to me for big hugs at the end. It's really fun to play that game with her.

She's actually pretty strong and can hold on for a few seconds by herself. I think she gets that muscle strength from her mom, ;-). OK, maybe not!

We let Anna have part of our ice-cream cone yesterday. I'll let you be the judge of whether or not she liked it.

Life is good!

Cardinals Game

Holy Cow people!!!...... We are now in the single digit countdown! Nine more days. Hopefully less, not more. My doctor's appointment went well this week. I haven't progressed at all but he's still healthy, just hanging out in there. I'm so excited for my family to come when he's born. It's just going to be a wonderful time.
Last week our friends Jon and Laura had two extra Cardinal tickets and they offered them to us. We excitedly accepted and had a great time. Our seats were AMAZING!! We were right behind home plate. We always have fun with Jon and Laura. They are amazing friends. It was a really fun night! And....the Cardinals won, so that's always a plus!

Simple Pleasures

This picture is of Anna one year ago. I CANNOT believe how much she has grown. It's like she's a whole different person. She couldn't even walk then and now she's running all over the place, telling us what to do.

I thought this picture was just adorable. We had a great night last night. I love when we can just stay home and play. She loves turning on The Little Mermaid soundtrack and dancing the night away. We have dance parties several times a week! Josh spins and dips her and she's in heaven the whole time. That is what true happiness is all about.

She just looks so grown up to me.

I thought that this face was funny. She's even cute when she's pouting.

Anna and her sweet Daddy.

Could she look happier? I think not.

Anna loves dancing most when she is on her daddy's shoulders.

Baby Shower

A few of my friends threw me a baby shower last week. It was wonderful. We all went out to eat at Olive Garden and had some delicious chocolate cupcakes to celebrate. I seriously have the very best friends in the world. They have all been so good to me. These girls are truly special people. Having a baby shower involving Olive Garden food could not have been a better idea. Hello, I'm pregnant and love any chance I get to indulge in yummy goodness. The girls got me the cutest outfits for Andrew. I can't wait to try all of them on him. Thanks girls for a great and memorable day!

P.S. I'm 38 weeks today. I have another doctor's appointment on Tuesday. Last week I was at 1.5 cm and still 60% effaced. We'll see how much I've progressed this week...hopefully a little more. ;-)