Practice Makes Perfect

I can't believe Christmas is just a few days away.  I really don't know where the time has gone.  The Allen family came home just last week....it will be our first Christmas in a long while where we are all together.
With just a couple short months away, James and I will have a new addition to the Walbruch family.  I will admit I feel completely unprepared and hoping that it just falls into place for us.
For the time being we get to practice with our nieces and nephews.  We watched Eva and Benson recently and they seem to gravitate towards James.  Just watching James take care of these little ones gives me comfort that we will be okay:)
I did ask James a while back if he would "baby talk" to our girl.  He said yes probably.  I just couldn't really picture him doing that, but after watching him play with Benson and Eva, he has it down just fine.   James is going to be a great dad.

The Allen Family Return

Hooray!  The Allen family has come home to MN!  Dan, Emily, Eva and Benson flew in Saturday evening and we have been anticipating their return for a while now.  The last time we saw them was after Benson was born.  They will be here for almost 3 full weeks!  Dan has to get back to the grind early though due to school.  But in my opinion, Fall is the best time to visit MN!

I love having my whole family in one place, what a blessing that is.  It has been so much fun to see all 5 of the nieces and nephews run around and play with each other.  Kids are so care-free.

Benson is just all smiles.  Such a beautiful baby boy.  Eva is so dramatic, I love it. She talks full sentences now and is full of energy. Kind of reminds me of me....the dramatic part, not the energy part. Both of them have just gotten so big. 

Here are a few pictures for your viewing pleasure:

Third time around is a charm

Our ultrasound appointment was cancelled TWICE in a matter of two days.  The second time it was cancelled James and I had already checked in at the front desk and we were just waiting to be called to see the doctor....oh we got called alright, back up to the front desk to tell us that the doc had been called into the OR.


They could squeeze us in a little later with a nurse practitioner...after all I really didn't care who I saw just as long as they could tell me the gender and if the baby looked good.  Checking in for the second time that day. I calmly (as calmly as I could be at that point) asked if my ultrasound was still on if I wasn't seeing my regular doctor.  Nope, they didn't have any record of me having an ultrasound that day.  Apparently I was supposed to tell them last month to make an ULTRASOUND appointment not just any old appointment.  Would have been good to know, I don't know, say maybe last month?

All in all, they got us in for just a gender check.  I was already pretty emotional and James was so good at making sure I kept it together.  Everyone in our family thought it was a boy.  I didn't know what to think but I was hoping for a girl.  To see those tiny little hands and feet kick around was pretty amazing.  The tech finally said, well there it is, "Three Lines".....she paused and didn't say anything else and I'm thinking, OK.....AND?  You are having a baby girl.  When I heard her say that I couldn't really say anything, the whole day had been so overwhelming to me.  I can't even describe how very happy and grateful I felt in that moment.

I already started shopping and looking for things online that night......James glanced over and said, "oh geez, here we go".  :)

Our number one name is Gertie, thoughts?

Parenting Tip #1: Fill them with pizza and sugar and send 'em on their way!

James and I had kid duty friday evening.  Three of them to be exact.  The last time Reva was at our house she said to me, "Jana I can't wait until you start having children because half of this stuff will be ruined"  Ok, so I admit, my house isn't exactly child friendly.  I guess the only thing in our house that kids would want to play with is our Wii.  Thank goodness for the Wii.

I told Reva to have the kids bring some toys so they wouldn't be bored out of their mind.  I decided to supplement some of that time with a fun cooking project.  Monster eyeballs.  It seemed cool enough and I would get points as a "fun aunt".  Chloe did say she loved her auntie numerous times during the night:)  After taking them to the park, I looked at James and said, "Do you think we are ready to handle this?"  He said "of course we are". 

The Olson kids are great though, so sweet and always full of laughs.  James and I love to be around them. 

A couple quotes that made my favorite list tonight:

Chloe:  I love Autumn!......you know, Autumn is another word for Fall.
Jana: where did you learn that Chloe?
Chloe: Bonnie!

I looked at James to see if he knew what she was talking about and he said, "BARNEY, you know the purple dinosaur."  Gotta love her New Yorker accent.

Walking to the park,
Chloe: Why are we walking sooo slow?
Jana: Well, pregnant women walk quite a bit slower.  Did you know that?
Chloe: I did not know that, my mom did not tell me this.

And of course, Zayah talking to "Odis" and giving him commands all night long.  It is pretty darn cute.

Those kids just cling to James.  He is so good with them, I know he is going to make one heck of a father.

A prayer from a child

Today our hometeacher and his son came over to visit James and I.  His son's name is Max.  He is an extremely cute kid....and very smart. Probably 4 or 5 years old.   Max has grown very fond of Otis.  While Aaron was sharing his message, Max would crawl around on the floor and try to get Otis to chase him.  James asked Max to give a closing prayer, with a huge grin on his face he starts:

"Dear Heavenly Father,

Please bless that Otis will be a good dog and that the next time I come over he won't try to chase me and tackle me,

In the name of Jesus Christ Amen."

The Pro's and Con's of Pregnancy

PROS

*I'm having a BABY!

*I have an excuse to eat whatever I want (I usually tell James that the baby wants a certain

food that I am craving at that particular time)

*I get a whole new wardrobe!

*Buying things for the baby

*Finally being able to use one of my baby names

*Food tastes a MILLION times better

*People are way nicer to pregnant ladies

CONS

*I have to buy pregnancy clothes (Yes I put that in the Pros as well, but really

who wants to buy Pregnancy clothes)

*Constant Nausea

*Throwing up

*HEART BURN!

*No energy

*Gaining weight

*Feeling bloated

*Being way too emotional (this is a double whammy considering I am already pretty emotional)

*Muscle/Joint Aches

*Always running to the bathroom

So, these are just a few pros and cons that I have run into so far 12 weeks along.  I can already tell that when I am six months pregnant people will think I am 9 months....oh joy.  I have thoroughly enjoyed eating beef which I normally wouldn't touch....steak, hamburgers, prime rib...the list goes on and on my friends.  My sister Marla thinks it is definitely a boy because of my MEAT cravings.  James has been SO very good to me.  I got to hear the sweet little heartbeat this morning.  I think now it has become a real thing for me.  James and I couldn't be more grateful and excited for this new little person.

28 feels pretty great

James' birthday was July 24th.  I had been thinking about what I would do for his birthday months ago.  The first year we were together, James and I took a road trip to Chicago for a birthday weekend.  I probably shouldn't have started out with a weekend getaway to an awesome city because it is really hard to beat. 

So instead I decided I would give him a little stay-cation for his birthday.  We went to Captain America sat. afternoon and then drove dt Minneapolis to check into a hotel!  For dinner we went to the Melting Pot....my parents gave James a gift certificate there so it worked out rather well.  It was absolutely delicious and just something different.  Not to mention James and I have been talking about going there since we first started dating. 

We were able to sleep in the next morning and take our time getting ready.  I made reservations at Hell's Kitchen which has their famous lemon ricotta pancakes.  James and I tried something different and it was all so good. Our Waiter had on one piece sock monkey pj's....James said "now Marla would appreciate this:)"   I don't think Hell's is ever not crowded.  After lunch we made our way to the beautiful Target Field for the Twins game.  They played Detroit.....I was hoping they could pull off a win in honor of James' birthday but no such luck.  We had awesome weather and wait for it.........we got on the big TV!  Yep, we are famous now:)

He's my daddy and I'll cry if I want to

James went to CUB one evening to get a few things that I needed to have right away......so he left Otis in the bedroom with me and quickly shut the door so he wouldn't follow him.

IMMEDIATELY he started to whine and cry. It was the most obnoxious thing in the world! James was gone for approximately 10 min. and I was trying to calm Otis to pipe the heck down.....nothing worked....nothing! It was seriously the first time he has ever done it to this extreme.


I guess you could say he is a daddy's boy.

Lookin' good Jimmy

Softball season has arrived!  For the past two years, James has participated in playing softball with his co-workers. All of the law firms in the minneapolis area participate and compete against one another.  He really enjoys being able to play.  They make jerseys for the season and everything!  Last year James' nickname on the back of his shirt was Wally.  Our friend Logan gave him that one obviously playing off his last name.  My dad actually still calls him that:) 

This year we had to think of something different.  The team captain gave me a list of nicknames of what she thought would be good.....needless to say James was not fond of any of them.  I rattled off a bunch of nicknames for him, each one being rejected by James...and then it happened, I made the most perfect nickname for James.  TDOW.  That's right.  TALL DRINK OF WATER.  He is isn't he?

On James and I very first date we were talking about being tall and having a hard time to find other tall people to date.  James then went on to tell me about how this old lady came up to him when he was working as a manager at CUB Foods in St. Cloud.  She couldn't reach an item so she asked for his help.....and then told him what a tall drink of water he was. It was a great story.

The Justin Bieber Experience

OK, I admit it.  Ask me a year ago and I could care less about Justin Bieber.  But then something happened.....Glee performed Justin Bieber on the show and I fell in love.  I think I have watched the Glee Justin Bieber episode half a dozen times and it cheers me right up.

My sister Reva also happens to be a fan...but it happened after renting the Justin Beiber movie (which I have not seen).  She bought the CD and her kids pretty much know the words to the entire album.  It is hilarious.  There are many clips of them dancing to his music....this just happens to be one of my favorite:)

A Berry great day of strawberry pickin'

Ryan and Katie LOVE to hang out with James and I.  They had a great idea to go to the strawberry farm and pick strawberries.  I loved that idea.....James wasn't as excited as I was though:)  The field smelled so good and the berries were beautiful.

It was pretty easy to spend a few bucks.  Ryan and Katie filled TWO big bins and James and I filled one.  We bought over 30 pounds of strawberries all together.  The whole time I was picking I thought of my dear sweet Clover who is obsessed with strawberries.  She would have loved coming with us...although I don't know if she would have been much help actually "picking" the berries instead of her eating them.

We enjoyed a strawberry shake...and it was a good shake at that.  It felt good after sweating in the fields.

Strawberry jam here we come!

Lutsen Getaway

James and I were lucky enough to get away for a few days and go up north.  We spent 3 days and 2 nights at the lovely Lutsen lodge.  We couldn't have asked for better weather.  It was great to be right next to the water.  We did a variety of things we we love to do each time we head north.  We of course love to stop and shop at Dewitt-Seitz Building in Duluth where my most favorite restaurant happens to be....The taste of Saigon!  Their Vietnamese egg rolls are to die for!  They are family owned business and I just love them.  In the building they have a candy shop and some art galleries and then some other gift shops I like to look at.

We headed on our way to Lutsen and checked in.  The rooms reminded me a lot of Lambs Resort, a place my family and I used to stay at when we were younger.  Very old fashioned and well, yeah, lets just stick with old-fashioned.  It was a typical log room cabin feel.  But the lodge is RIGHT on the shore and it is gorgeous.  They have chairs lying there so you can just sit and listen to the waves come in and they also have three huge fire pits with plenty of wood to burn 24 hours a day.  I think that is pretty neat.  James and I walked the shoreline and we skipped rocks which I have to admit I haven't tried to do that in years.  It brought me back:)

We had dinner at their pub and took a dip in their pool and hot tub and called it a night.  It is crazy that driving can take so much out of you. 

We did some hiking.  We choose the cascade river.  It was flowing boys and girls.  Flowing good.  Later we headed even more north to Grand Marais for, wait for it.....FUDGE.  Heck yeah, why would we even drive all this way not to get fudge.  It is only the best fudge in the world.  So we bought fudge and some homemade dog treats, which by the way were 8 dollars....James even got the lady's card just in case Otis "liked" the treats.  I'm pretty sure I won't be ordering anymore of those treats whether he "liked" them or not.  Not for that price.  I'll learn how to make my own treats thank you very much.   Oh, and we also walked to the lighthouse, I don't think I have done that since I was a little kid with my family.  There were all these cool rock sculptures people had made out there.

 I would show a picture of that but our camera battery had died the moment I turned on the camera from the very beginning of the trip, that is why you see pictures of only scenery....I got these pictures off the internet.  But really, what you see is what we saw so there you have it, our Lutsen trip in a nutshell.  What a great trip, eh?