Pool Party

Friday morning is when the guys left for the big hike, I dropped Brian off with the rest of the guys and wished them lots of luck and safety. Fortunately they borrowed a handy dandy SPOT gps tracker thing and it was seriously a life saver, we tracked where they were and their progress and Brian was even able to send pre-programmed messages that said they were on track and doing ok, it was fabulous. Anyway, more on that later, back to the pool party on Friday.

One of the Moms in my moms group has a community pool and had a little pool party. Jenny was already up so she joined me and we had a really good time, it was hot outside so the pool felt fabulous.

Swimming around with Aunt Jenny.

Coming to take a little break from swimming.

Lounging with her friend Bailey.

Cuties :)

And of course it wouldn't be a good post unless I made sure to tell you how awesomely clumsy I am. Since I'm so graceful as it is, being 9 months pregnant only adds to my elegant ways. As I started to climb the stairs down into the water I totally slipped and fell in, creating quite the splash and cutting open my big toe, right on the tip. I could not help but laugh at my clumsy self, I mean, a 9 month pregnant woman falling into a pool is freaking hilarious, I just wish it was caught on camera...kind of. ;) My toe is pretty gross and was pussing the other day so I'm keeping neosporin on it and praying it goes away soon so I can go get a pedicure!

After swimming for awhile we had some pizza, did a little more swimming and then headed home for nap time. My mom, Jaime, and the kids were there waiting for us and our fun weekend officially began :) Once Bria woke up we headed for some shopping and then out to dinner to Macaroni Grill, I love their bread. Once we put the kids to bed we chatted for awhile and caught up on life, then headed to bed ourselves.

Date night

We are trying to cram in some more date nights before we add another baby into the mix of things so last week Heather and Amy came over to watch Bria while Brian and I went out. We went out to dinner and then to some stores to walk around, it's amazing how just walking around a store without a toddler is relaxing and enjoyable :)

Us on our date night :)

Bria having fun at home :)

We had a pretty busy week and finished up swim lessons last Thursday. This last weekend was the big guys hike so I'll write a little more about that later. While the guys hiked we had a girls weekend at my house and I absolutely loved it, it was just what I needed and it felt great spending so much time with my Mom, sister's, nieces, nephew, cousin, and soon to be sister-in-law :) I have pictures and everything so stay tuned for that!

Decorating

With the late stages of pregnancy comes nesting, and this time around my nesting isn't just cleaning, it's more about decorating the house. I want to get things more complete in our house, particularly the girls' rooms and their bathroom.

So, Bria's room is almost complete. We chose not to paint since this is a rental, that makes me a little sad because it's amazing what a freshly painted wall can do for a bedroom. But that's okay, we'll survive. Here are pictures of Bria's TinkerBell room:

The door to go in the bedroom is to the left, Bria is standing in front of her closet, and I am taking the picture standing in front of her window.

And this is from the door, walking into her room.

A close up of the decor above her bed. Brian painted her pink star, purple. And the ADORABLE TinkerBell pictures are from Brian's step sister and her husband, so nice!

Looking to the right a little as you walk in.

The window. I want to hang something on either side of the curtains but I haven't decided what yet.

I know her room doesn't have much in it but I really like the simplicity.

Close up of the decor and bookshelf. Just need a TinkerBell lamp now ;)

Adorable TinkerBell night light.

Alright so that is Bria's room. The other thing I want to do in here (aside from adding something in either side of the curtains) is put a long mirror to the right of the bookshelf, so in between the bookshelf and the door. I saw a bright green one at Ross and I think I might have to snag it up. Bria would undoubtedly love it because what 2 year old girl doesn't love looking at herself in the mirror, especially after she is all dressed for the day :)

You can look at pictures of the nursery in the baby blog, basically I have to hang everything on the walls and I'm not sure exactly how I want to do that yet. But I love the color of purple in there. Funny how both the girls' rooms turned out purple and that is currently my newest obsession :)

Family weekend

We went down to Albany on Saturday because my Grandma is in town from Arizona. It was wonderful seeing her and we had a nice family BBQ on Saturday. We got to hang out most of the day and relax, chat, and eat delicious food. It was also Cassidy's birthday so we celebrated the big 8! :)

On Sunday the weather heated up very nicely and we took a dip in the Jensen's pool:

For some reason it took Bria awhile to warm up to it, but once she did she had fun with her Dad.

After some fun in the water she ate and then went down for a nap while I went to my family baby shower. It was so fun to spend time with the girls and to celebrate our new addition that will be coming so soon! She got some ADORABLE outfits and bows and it was just so much fun. I love baby showers :)

This week is the last week of swim lessons which is sad, it's been nice having something to keep us busy twice a week, plus Bria loves swimming.

This weekend is also the big hike that Brian hasn't stopped talking about for months. I'm not too thrilled about it considering I'm 9 months pregnant and he's leaving for 4 days where I can't get ahold of him. Why does he think that's ok? My Mom and sisters are coming up for the weekend to keep us company while the guys go off so that will be fun.

That's about all I have today, as you can tell I'm pretty tired and I feel like I'm just kind of rambling so I'll quit while I'm ahead :)

Daily Doings: Friday

• Woke up at 8 am and Bria was still sleeping (she was up again last night, not sure why) so I went downstairs and did my usual coffee and computer time.
• Bria woke up at 8:30 am and we had breakfast and then got ready to go to the Zoo, we were meeting Lanie and Bristol there.
• We took the Max (train) which Bria loves. Got to the Zoo a little later than I meant too but fortunately Lanie wasn't mad at me ;)
• We had fun seeing some of the animals and the girls had a great time running around the grass area and eating lunch. It was hot today which actually felt good, I love the sun.
• I think it was around 1 pm that we headed home for a much needed nap. We didn't get home until 2 pm and Bria was pretty tired so she went right down, despite the incredibly loud fighter jets flying overhead (the Air Show is this weekend and we live less than a mile from the Airport).
• I straightened up the house a little, got on the computer, painted my toenails (which I am not doing again until after I have this baby, it was nearly impossible), then laid down and took a little snooze.
• Brian got home shortly after 4 pm (I love when he comes home early :) and then Bria woke up about 15 minutes after that, fortunately she was in good spirits. He cuddled her while I vacuumed the house. I actually enjoy vacuuming, I think it's kind of relaxing.
• I finished cleaning the house (can you tell we had people coming over? Our friends Joe and Dehlia and their 2 kids came over to watch the Air Show from the park with us) and Brian and Bria went to the store and then to pick up some pizza.
• Our friends came over around 6 pm and we all enjoyed some pizza and play time. Their little girl, Sophie, is almost 3 and her and Bria had a lot of fun together, they are pretty similar so it's funny to watch.
• After we all got some dinner in us we walked down the street and found a perfect spot to watch the Air Show. I was seriously in awe the whole time, it was so freakin' cool. Of course, the Jets were pretty loud so the little girls weren't liking it too much. We drove one of the cars down and put the girls in there watching a movie while we sat outside in the grass and everyone was happy that way :) It was an awesome show, loved it.
• We came home and let the kids play for awhile, they were playing so well together (which is not always the case with 2 and 3 year olds ;) so they got to stay up later than normal and us adults got to enjoy each other's company.
• After they left we put Bria to bed and went downstairs to relax for a little while.

Alright, so I completed my goal of journaling our days for a week, yay :) Now hopefully I will remember what it was like having one child ;)

Daily Doings: Thursday

Bria slept better last night, thanks goodness. Hopefully her teeth and growing pains are giving her a break for now.

• I woke up at 6:45 am because it's garbage day and those trucks are loud. I headed downstairs for my decaf coffee and computer time. I finished some blog posts and stuff.
• Bria woke up at 7:40 am and we went in to watch Daddy finish shaving his face :)
• After Brian left we ate some cereal and then headed out on our morning walk.
• It was 9 am when we got back and I wanted to get ready and head to Target before swim lessons but I was too tired. So instead I started some laundry, drank another cup of decaf coffee and made lists. Bria watched a little Sesame Street and then read her books to her Jessie doll.

• I got us packed and ready for swim lessons and we headed out.
• Bria did amazing at swim lessons again. She swam back and forth between me and the edge of the pool. It wasn't a far distance but she did it and had fun doing it :)
• We showered, dressed, and headed home for lunch.

For some reason I love our walk from the aquatic center to our car. I think we're both in a good mood, clean, and ready for lunch.

After lunch we went outside while I dipped my feet in our little pool, Bria went down her slide, played in the pool and just had a grand old time.

1. At 1 pm she said she was ready to go inside so we headed upstairs for her nap. She read some books (these days she reads to me most the time) and then I tucked her in.
2. I fixed my hair, put away laundry and removed my old nail polish from my toes (which is not an easy task!). Then I sat outside and read for awhile, I'm really trying to soak up the sun while it lasts because this summer has been horrid and now people are talking about back to school and it's freaking me out, summer hasn't arrived and it's almost over already?!
3. Bria woke up a little after 4 pm when Brian got home. She was pretty cranky so we put on Toy Story and gave her a healthy milkshake.
4. She finally perked up and played and read while I put together our new glider and Brian finished up some stuff in the garage.
5. I made dinner and afterwards Bria had a meltdown and kept saying she didn't feel good and that her head hurt. She had a bit of a temperature so we gave her medicine and seriously sat on the couch until bath time. We sang and talked and she was in somewhat good spirits but you could tell she just didn't feel good, darn teeth.
6. We did our normal bedtime routine which consists of bath, hanging out on our bed (reading or rough housing with Daddy), brushing teeth, lotion, pj's, stories, prayers, and songs.

Reading to Daddy :)

• Now Brian and I are going to retire to the couch for awhile then eventually to sweet slumber. Well, hopefully it's sweet and we all get a good night's rest :)

Daily Doings: Wednesday

So Bria's molars are causing some major set backs in her sleep, she has seriously never slept this horribly since she was a newborn. It sucks.

1. Bria woke up at 4:30 am to go potty, usually she's good about going right back to sleep. She was quiet for 1/2 hour so I thought she did but then she started whining and talking and then crying. I went in a few times and this went on until 6:30 am when we finally both got to sleep.
2. I woke up at 8 am and drank my decaf coffee while surfing the net.
3. Bria woke up at 8:30 am. She randomly got a puzzle out of her closet and we worked on that for a few minutes before heading downstairs for breakfast.
4. After breakfast we headed out on our morning walk, Bria did pretty well again. She enjoyed reading her books.
5. We came home and colored on her white board, played with the fairies, straightened up the play area and then got ready for our picnic with some moms club people.
6. 11:00 am went to the park, I enjoyed talking with my mom friends and Bria enjoyed running all over. They have a public restroom there and at one point Bria ran over and stood in line. I walked over and the mom standing there told me that Bria said she had to go potty. I thought it was so cute she went all by herself, lol.
7. We got home about 12:40 pm from the park and she watched a little Toy Story to help her calm down. Around 1:15 pm I told her it was time for a nap and she promptly turned off the tv and walked upstairs, I love those moments.
8. I looked outside our front door and there was a large package sitting there, whatever could it be? A glider and ottoman from Sara!!!! I'm so freaking excited!
9. I spent some time on the computer, straightened up the downstairs a little, and read.
10. It was almost 4 pm before Bria woke up. We watched a little tv to help her wake up.
11. She played for awhile while I made some dinner and Brian napped and showered (he had a long day at work volunteering at an elementary school doing yard work)
12. After dinner we headed to REI to pick up something for Brian and then to Heather's. Amy was there too and Bria had so much fun with them, even if she was a little shy at first.
13. We came home, Bria played for a few minutes and then it was bath time.
14. Shortly after she went to bed she started crying and saying her leg hurt, we think maybe it was growing pains. I can't relate very much because I didn't grow very fast or very tall ;) Anyway, Brian rubbed lotion on her leg and told her it was medicine, it seemed to work.
15. Brian and I watched a little tv then turned in early to read and get some sleep. We were in bed before 10 pm and it felt really good.

Daily Doings: Tuesday

1. Brian had to be to work a little before 8 am so his alarm went off at 7 am and we got up.
2. He left and I sipped my coffee while checking email and blogs and all that fun stuff.
3. Bria woke up around 7:45 am and we had a bowl of cereal together.
4. Got exercise stuff on and went for a walk. Bria did AWESOME. She just sat in the stroller with her Jessie doll pointing out things she saw and singing.
5. Came home and put on Toy Story while I quickly showered and got our stuff ready for swim lessons.
6. 9:45 am-Left to go to doctor's appointment, Brian joined us. It was a good appointment, fast, but good.
7. Said goodbye to Brian and then Bria and I drove the 3 blocks to her swim lessons, it was so convenient having it close by :)
8. Bria was AWESOME in swim lessons. Not only is she good about going under water, but she started going under all by herself. We were in the shallow end and she would just sit down and put her head under while blowing bubbles, she did it a ton and the teacher was really impressed, so was I! Such a little swimmer.
9. Got home at noon and had some lunch.
10. I was going to let her play for awhile but she seemed really tired so we went upstairs and I read her some books, then she "read" one and then she went down for a nap. I promptly laid down in my bed for 45 minutes because I was exhausted as well, we had a busy morning.
11. I got up a little after 2 pm and got on the computer, did some dishes, started some laundry, and watched Ellen while I folded laundry.
12. Bria woke up at 3:30 and I made her a "shake" which included the following ingredients: nonfat frozen yogurt, Nesquik, frozen strawberries, bananas, and some milk. She devoured it and I was happy she had some fruit :)
13. Then we went outside and played in our little pool and rocket water toy.
14. We came back inside and played with fairies, colored, and waited for Daddy to come home, our favorite time of the day :)
15. Brian came home, we played, made dinner, ate dinner, and cleaned up.
16. Then we headed to Goodwill (to look for a stool for the bathroom) and Costco (for gas and milk). Bria has been enjoying running errands lately and asks to go to more stores so it's kind of fun to take her out.
17. By the time we came home it was bathtime (7:30) so Brian plopped her in the bath and we started the routine.
18. Brian and I watched tv as usual and each had to tend to Bria once. I don't know if it's her teeth but she finds a reason to yell for us. When Brian went in at 9:15 pm she said she was all done with her nap. He told her it was time to go to bed and she said ok.
19. We crawled in bed a little after 10 pm.

Daily Doings: Monday

Since things are about to change here at the Holcomb house (if you don't know what I'm talking about click here) I wanted to document our day to day lives a little bit so I remember what it was like having one child. Basically I'm saying that this will be boring for you and I'm doing it for my benefit. My goal is to journal every day this week and just write down what a day in the Holcomb house looks like. So, here goes.

Monday:

1. I woke up about 7:20 am and went downstairs to a knock at the door, the carpet guy was coming to pick up his dehumidifier and fan (long story short, the a/c condensation was leaking into the little fort area under the stairs, it got fixed but the carpet guy brought a dehumidifier to get rid of all the moisture and clean up any bacteria)
2. Bria woke up about 7:35 am and was a little cranky. Brian got up with her since I was downstairs dealing with the carpet guy
3. I get Bria some cereal, her favorite right now is Shredded Wheat Honey Nut, and milk and poured myself some cereal as well.
4. Said bye bye to Daddy as he headed off to work
5. Put Bria's toys back in her fort since it was all clean now
6. Bria played and read some books while I checked the computer
7. Got my exercise clothes on, snacks and books ready and headed out for a walk. Bria isn't the most laid back stroller rider so I have to make sure I take stuff to keep her entertained while I power walk the neighborhoods for 45 minutes. Today she did pretty good, yay :)
8. Put Rugrats on for Bria (she had never seen it and it was on Netflix so I thought what the heck) while I showered and got ready, then got Bria ready for the day.
9. While doing Bria's hair she had 2 major meltdowns so I escaped to my room for a break. When I was calm I scooped her up with her pink blanket and we rocked in the nursery until she felt better. I'm learning when she starts having multiple meltdowns that she needs extra loves.
10. At this point it's almost noon so I packed up a lunch and headed to the park for a picnic, my favorite :) We had a wonderful PB&J sandwich, graham crackers, an apple (she of course didn't eat the apple, grrr), banana chips, and a cookie.
11. Bria ran around the grass while I enjoyed the sun and it was just fabulous, she would bring me flowers (ya know, the white weeds that grow in the grass) or sticks and then she started quoting movies and her imagination was in full force, it was so much fun to watch and so relaxing. I thought about how our picnics, just the 2 of us, aren't going to happen once the baby comes so I was thoroughly enjoying our time together.
12. Walked home from the park, read a few books and then put her down for a nap (a little after 1 pm).
13. I put away some laundry, blogged and then took a nap myself.
14. At 3:15 pm I woke up and did some dishes and checked email and stuff and Bria didn't wake up until after 4 pm! Awesome nap, yay :)
15. She was a little cranky and complained her mouth hurt so I put some Orajel on the molar that's coming in, put Toy Story on, and gave her a little snack. She perked up pretty quickly.
16. Brian came home at 5 pm and we started dinner and then ate.
17. After dinner we let the food digest while we finished watching Toy Story. This was also mixed with playing and Bria hanging upside down thanks to Daddy :)
18. Around 6:30 pm we went for a walk to the park
19. Got home shortly after 7:30 pm and Brian gave her a bath, brushed her teeth, lotioned her up, and got her pj's on. Then I went in, read some stories, said a prayer, and sang some songs.
20. Went back in there twice because she had to go potty (the second time she didn't go I just don't think she was tired)
21. Brian and I retired to the couch and watched some tv and talked about our days.
22. Brian just headed to bed because he was extra tired and I'm up blogging and will head to bed shortly, let's hope I can sleep comfortably tonight :)

I don't have pictures from our day today, but I still wanted to include some cute ones of my sweet girl:

Daddy got her this cute shirt, it says, "Cool like Daddy" and I love it.

Such a big girl

She was being so cooperative for pictures I couldn't help but take a bunch.

And this was in the morning when she was still in her pj's...and Daddies shoes :)

Cheese!

A Monumental Moment

Brian and I both cheered at OSU. So you can imagine that cheer is in the blood for our two little girls. We won't ever pressure them to be a cheerleader, but we'll provide opportunities if that is what they choose to do. Today, we provided an opportunity. Well, the Parks and Rec department in our town did. I can't tell you how excited I was to take Bria to a little cheer class. We tried on Bria's cheer uniform from last year and I was so happy it still fit, even if it's a little short.

So of course I dressed her to the nines:

Cheer outfit: Yaya and Papa

Socks: Grammy

Shoes: Heather

Bows: Mom and Dad

Coat: Not pictured, but from the Bauer's (it's adorable and orange and don't worry she'll wear it for football season)

My little cheerleader!!!!!!

Trying to get a picture with her friend Sophie :)

Ahh, I can't tell you how much I loved watching her prance around.

I was impressed at how well Bria listened to the teacher and followed directions. I did have a pep talk with her on the way there :) Plus I think having her in gymnastics for awhile and now swim lessons she's getting better at listening to another authority figure besides myself and Brian. The teacher had them come sit down in a circle and this is where Bria decided to sit:

Teacher's pet.

She is so my daughter.

Learning some cheer motions with the cutest little pom poms ever.

Listening intently to the teacher.

She did stare off into space a few times.

She also gets that from me.

Stunting!

Brian and Bria stunt at home so she was a natural at this part ;)

I was actually really impressed at the class. The gal teaching it did a really good job of getting them all involved and excited. They started out by stretching, then kicking, then jumping, some arm motions, dancing, and then stunting. Bria had a blast. At the end they did crafts and colored a piece of paper that the teacher turned into a megaphone.

I couldn't help but write, "Go Beavs" on her megaphone :)

Officially a cheerleader with her megaphone in hand.

I can't tell you how fun it was to watch her.

We just sat back and watched her do her thing, it was a very proud day. I will leave you with 2 adorable videos, little girls cheerleading is just precious.

Party for me?

Bria's cousin (technically second cousin), Bristol, turned 2 last Saturday and we had a blast celebrating. Bria was so excited about Bristol's party, but she also liked to add that it was HER birthday party. It was a little hard to explain that hers wasn't for another 6 months.

There were little pools to swim in,

bubbles to chase,

more pools to sit on the edge of,

juice to drink,

and football to play.

She had a blast playing catch with us, I think it's time to get her a football :)

Bristol and Bria going for a ride,

Bria loves going to birthday parties. Not only because she loves playing with kids...or because she loves swimming...or because she loves chasing bubbles...or because she gets juice...or even because she gets to ride in fire trucks...

this girl loves parties because she gets to inhale cupcakes.

She loves cupcakes.

And doesn't care how messy she gets in order to eat one.

I think she fears I will take it away so she eats it as fast as possible.

Bria doesn't get that many treats because she's not the best eater. If she ate fruits and vegetables I would be more inclined to give her sweets, but alas she eats very little of either one so her sweets are withheld. Except at birthday parties :)

The birthday girl with an adorable crown one of Lanie's crafty friends made.

Opening presents!

After the party the girls played with some of Bristol's new toys.

This little tricycle was a huge hit. I think I need to have Brian rig a little handle on the back of Bria's tricycle because it made it soooo nice to push the girls around on it.

This week is actually kind of busy which is nice. Yesterday was our only free day, meaning we didn't have plans in the morning so Bria and I ran errands and then went to the park and had a picnic. This morning we went for a walk and then to swim lessons. Bria's doing really well in swim lessons and her teacher said she will be great at the next level.

Tomorrow is a playdate with my mom's group, Thursday is swim lessons, and Friday is another playdate with the mom's group. Then Saturday is a cheer class for Bria! I can't tell you how excited I am about this. My friend Dehlia found it through the Parks and Rec department. It's just a 45 minute class but it's for 2 and 3 year olds and I just can't wait to see Bria out there, hopefully she has fun :)

So that's our week in a nutshell, hopefully I remember to take pictures. Now that Bria and I are almost 100% better, Bria has been so much easier. The last 2 weeks have been so hard with her that I cried almost every day. But yesterday I finally saw my sweet little Bria for most the day and it helped me so much. I'm hoping this good phase will last awhile.