Time to Fill the Freezer

I have lots of cravings when I'm pregnant, but living where I do has helped me keep a handle on them. I may be wanting that ________ with all my being, but is it really worth it to bundle everyone up, drive three hours (round trip) through a blizzard and come home in the wee hours of the morning just to fulfill it? I think not. Last week, however, I had a craving I could fulfill. I WANTED baked cabbage. I had cabbage on hand. It was a healthy option. I baked some to go with supper and happily ate it all as:
1. Karl doesn't do cooked vegetables
2. Heidi thought it looked a little scary, and
3. I didn't think Hannah would be able to chew it, molars are helpful there.
I was pleased with myself. I had actually fulfilled a pregnancy craving (it really doesn't happen very often).

After supper, Karl pulled me aside and whispered sweetly into my ear, "I like it better when you crave ice cream."

Does this mean I get to cash in on that one a bit more often? YES!!!!!

Some "Real" Reading

I wasn't sure if Heidi was ready for chapter books yet, but I decided to give it a try. Today, less than a week after starting "Little House in the Big Woods", Heidi was crying because she realized we were on the last page. Thankfully I had a whole series to show her and the tears turned to bliss. That love for literature I'm seeing makes it just a little more worthwhile to read the same children's book to Hannah for the twentieth time a day!

She's Giving Me A Complex

I'll be the first to admit that I have never been slender, and that after Hannah, my stomach never exactly returned to its former state, and, now that I am expecting again, it seems to know exactly what it needs to do to accommodate a growing baby - expand. I do not, however, believe it to be as big as Heidi would lead me to believe. A few times a day now she pats my tummy and tells me, "Yep, it's growing and growing and growing." Then, the other night, I was carrying her to bed and she began to yell,
"Oh, oh, oh!!!"
"What's wrong?" I asked with alarm.
"I going to fall!!!!"
Not sensing any impending danger, I asked her why.
"It's your tummy, Momma, It getting so big I can't hold on any more!"

Hmmm... we're still at the beginning of this race, I wonder what she's going to think when we get closer to the end.

Today is Turtle's Birthday

"Today is Turtle's Birthday!" These words, filled with awe, wonder, excitement, filled my ears soon after I got out of bed this morning.

"He is three 'ears (years) old, Momma, just like me!"

So we made a cake, and celebrated. After all, it isn't every day that Turtle has his third birthday!

Name of the Day

Were Heidi given naming authority and she were to have a little sister, the greatly deliberated and finally decided upon name for today would be:

Apple Petonia

Sadly for her, Dad and Mom are still thinking of maintaining naming rights.

A Winter Walk

Any Suggestions?

We could use your help.
Before I had children, naming them seemed to be one of the fun parts. I knew it carried a certain amount of responsibility, I mean, the name I gave would essentially be that child's identity for life, but fun, none-the-less.
I neglected to factor in the fact that my child would have a father. Small oversight on my part, I know. And that father would have a say in what our child's name was. And that father and I would have very DIFFERENT ideas as to what constitutes a good name. Suddenly, when pregnant for the first time, I was confronted with the fact that, not only was naming a child fun, it was HARD!
Actually, we agreed on a boy's name the first day. Not bad! I knew from that moment we would have a girl. We didn't officially decide on a name for our poor firstborn until the morning after she was born. Then our second came along, and we used up our reservoir of girls-names-we-can-agree-on. Now we're expecting our third. What if God blesses us with another girl? Will she be forced to go through life nameless? Will one of us have to resign ourselves to a name we don't like? Will we each have our own name for her (I know of a couple who did that) and totally confuse the poor child?
Do you have any suggestions? To help you out a bit, and try to narrow it down a bit more than those overwhelming baby name books for us, I'll fill you in a bit on our naming ideals. The best way I can think to describe our style would be familiar, yet not too common. Karl leans more toward the familiar (Rachel, Sarah), while I lean more toward the uncommon (Karis, Annika, Daria). We DON'T want to do another H. I really debated about doing two, but three would simply be too much. And we like names that are decidedly feminine, nothing that could sound like a boy. For Karl, it can't sound too close to something else (example Daria = diarrhea, Natalia = Nutella) and he has to have heard it before. For my California friends, this gets a bit tricky as he had never heard the name Summer until he met my sister, yet names like Gerhard, Dietrich, and Lynden are common fare. Please, suggest away! But don't feel too bad if your suggestions aren't used, we are obviously overly picky when it comes to choosing names for these wonderful children God blesses us with.

I Now Have TWO Helpers In The Kitchen!

Space at the kitchen sink has become prime real estate during dish time, but Hannah loves being able to contribute to getting those dishes clean. She's discovered the joy of helping Momma stir too!

And Heidi just keeps becoming more and more of a real help. How wonderful!

Blessed

"I feel rotten" I tell him, hand rubbing my abdomen.
"I'm sorry" he responds.
"I'm not" I say, mischievous twinkle in my eye.
A questioning eyebrow.
A nod and a smile.
Laughter.


Why would I be happy about feeling sick? Because I know it's only a small price to pay for the wonder of life growing within. Yes, I'm expecting! Wee Wagenhoffer#3 should be here sometime in August. Our official expected meeting date is August 14, but I'm guessing Baby may follow in sisters' footsteps and we'll be introduced a little closer to the end of the month. I'm already thinking it's going to be hard to wait that long to hold this little one in my arms.

It Figures

Four matching purple princess dresses (along with scepters, tiaras and purses). That's what I made for Christmas for my daughters and nieces. Of course, the whole time I was doing so, I was reminded that purple really wasn't the best color, and heard persistent polite requests for a "sparkly orange wedding dress and veil". I promised said dress, in spite of my own aversion to the color choice, after our trip to California. While in California, I therefore made a trip to the fabric store specifically for suitable orange material, bought it, packed it, and brought it home. I showed it to Heidi while unpacking and instead of the cries of delight I had anticipated, what greeted my ears was a rather disappointed,
"Oh, but I don't want an orange dress, Momma, I want a sparkly RED one."
"But Heidi," I countered, "you've been asking and asking for an orange one!"
"I know, Momma, but now I want a red one, not an orange one."
"But I already bought the fabric"
The reply was swift and given in the lilting tones of a spectacularly good idea, "I Know! You could make purses for all the other children out of it!"


Hmmm... not quite sure I'm up to making purses for "all the other children", but I'm guessing she may become a little more partial to the dress once it's fully made.

Tea Party

Four little cousins, wearing matching princess dresses (well, except for Hannah, who I somehow neglected to change in the midst of all the hustle and bustle) had a tea party together one day. How special to each get to choose one of Grandma's tea cups to use and have their very own little table to sit at! Manners were impeccable as they realized the grown-up- ness of the situation.

"California has so many playgrounds!"

Declared Heidi as we visited the third one of the trip. How exciting to have so many playgrounds close enough that we could just stop to play for a few minutes while we were out, and have it warm enough to be comfortable playing outside!

Gingerbread Houses

We decided to wait to do our traditional Christmas gingerbread houses until our cousins could join us. It was very worth the wait, and such fun to watch each girl's personality come out as she decorated!

All the girls
back row:Amber, me, Mom, Hannah, Cherish
Front row:Heidi, Annalisa, Keira

Picking Oranges With Papa

Of all the activities Heidi dreamed of doing in California, picking mandarins was at the top of the list. "I want to pick oranges off the tree just like Momma used to do when she was a little girl" she said with some regularity before we left. Grandpa heard her request and valiantly worked at keeping the oranges from freezing through the cold snap that arrived just before we did. His efforts were greatly appreciated!

We're Back

Our trip to California was a little different than envisioned. We got a nasty flu bug that kept us in bed more than we would have liked, but it was WONDERFUL to reunite with family and to spend time simply being together. Besides, who doesn't appreciate having their mommy around when they're sick?

We did manage to squeeze some fun in, doing things such as:

Watching our plane come in at the airport. Reading with Grandma.

Playing with puzzles.

Getting together with family...

some of whom are a little more sophisticated than others.

Dressing up like princesses.

Seeing our adored cousins.

Cooking with Grandma.

Playing with play dough.

Going to the Library, the favorite part of which was the child-sized furniture.

Riding bikes.

And being spoiled by Uncle Eric, who will long hold a place in his nieces hearts as the one who gave them a huge delightfully stripey lollipop for the ride home.

Thank you, Eric, for many moments of quiet contented traveling companions!

There is much more to share, of course, but too many pictures for a single post. I guess you'll have to wait for tomorrow.