Most everyone knows already, but the reason I haven't posted in so long (aside from the fact that I've been working while I'm at work since it's tax season - shocker!) is that WE'RE PREGNANT! We found out a little earlier than last time because I was pretty sick. I just thought it was the flu, but Brad talked me into taking a pregnancy test. We had been trying, but who knew that we were so fertile in January?
We had planned to try and have Baby Engle #2 around the same time Nolan was born, but for no other reason that practicality....you know, right size clothes for the right seasons if it's a boy. Turns out our due date is October 18. Sound familiar? That's because it's Nolan's birthday!! We knew it would be close, but when Dr. McCrann told us, we both started laughing. I'm really trying to avoid that day because I just don't want them to have to share a birthday. Also trying to avoid my birthday (the 11th).....I just can't think of anything less fun than giving birth on your day! But it's not exactly up to me, so we'll just wait and see what this little one has in store for us. (I'm hoping to go 2 weeks early like I did with Nolan and get out of the last 2 weeks of fall tax season, but shhhh, don't tell anyone I work with!)
We are both really excited about Baby #2, but we both have days where we think, "What were we thinking?????" I think the first couple of years will be a little hard, but down the road it'll be nice that they're so close in age. Nolan doesn't really know what's going on yet, except he does know where the baby is. When you ask him, he comes over to me and lifts up my shirt, points, and says "Baby!" He also does it to Brad's belly, so still a little confusion...probably until I get a little bigger. He has been a little extra fussy lately, and the girls at daycare have said that's pretty typical when mom is pregnant. I've also heard it's like that as you get closer to your due date.....so we'll see how that goes.
I am feeling much, much better now that I'm 15 weeks and out of my first trimester. Brad was a HUGE help when all I felt like doing was laying around for a couple months. I'm very lucky to have such a great husband who didn't complain once when I went to bed at 6pm and left him with all the parenting/cooking/cleaning duties. So, thanks, babe....it never went unnoticed :)
Sooooo, in Nolan News......he is getting to be such a big boy! We had his 18 month (wow! 18 months already!) check up on Monday, and Dr. Zavadil says everything is great. He's 22 lbs., 10 oz. (15th percentile) and 29 3/4 inches long (3rd percentile). She said there's no cause to worry that his height percentile is so low because both Brad and I are average (at best!). Poor little guy, he's just not gonna be tall! But his head circumference is in the 50th percentile....gets that from his Daddy!!
Nolan is saying more words every day. The ones we hear most are Daddy, Mommy, uh-oh, bee-bee (binky, Brinkley, AND blankie), nu, (Nuke), snack, more (while doing the sign language), please, thank you, baseball, car, open, book, ball, drink, table, bear, quack quack, and his favorite - outside! He doesn't say his s's at all, and the doctor said that's normal. He's been repeating everything we say more and more, so he's definitely trying. Before long we won't be able to get him to stop talking! My favorite thing that Nolan has been doing for awhile is giving hugs and kisses. It's just the sweetest thing ever and I hope he keeps doing it for awhile! I'm sure by the time he's 6 or 7, it will just be embarrassing though....
You'll see in the slideshow that he has a new booster seat that he sits in all the time now for meals at the table. He loves it! He's been doing well with his utensils at meals, and is still a really good eater. Although he does not like grilled cheese or cheeseburgers which I think is the weirdest thing! He loves cheese, so it must be the melted cheese that he doesn't like? Who knows.
We have been busy the last few months. Here are just a few highlights:
In January, my cousin Jason and his cousin Melissa came out to Colorado to visit a friend, so we were able to get together with them a couple of times. We went to a jazz concert in Boulder that was pretty cool (and definitely not something we have done before), and then had them over to our house for dinner. They were impressed with my down-home meal of pulled beef BBQ sandwiches and homemade macaroni & cheese. It made me feel good because I hardly ever cook an entire meal!! It was so nice to catch up with Jason since we don't see each other much anymore. We had a great weekend, complete with some culture!
Brad found cheap bicycles for both of us on Craiglist, so we got Nolan the little seat that goes on the back. He absolutely loved his first bike ride! He wasn't so sure about his helmet, but once Brad got going he kind of forgot about it and enjoyed the ride.
Nolan loves playing outside, and we had some uncharacteristically nice weather towards the end of February. While Brad was working on the landscaping, Nolan was busy eating dirt and exploring. He did end up eating some dog poop, but spit it right back out. Gross!
Nanny & Papa came for a visit the last weekend in February which was perfect timing. I felt like crap, so it was nice to have them around to help out with Nolan. And it was nice to spend some time with them too :) We went to the Children's Museum in Denver and Nolan had a blast. I can't wait to take him to the one in Indianapolis in a couple years - if it's as good as I remember, he'll absolutely love it! We didn't do much else while they were here, just hung out and relaxed.
Nolan got a double ear infection in March, but we never would have known if hadn't taken him to the doctor for a bad cough. I swear this kid is so good, he never once acted like his ears were bothering him. We are really lucky! One round of antibiotics later and he was good to go.
We traded in my Mazda6 for a family vehicle.....no, not a minivan, although I voted for it! We got a Chrysler Aspen that has third row seating and Brad could handle it since it's not such a 'mom' car! I really loved my little car, but it just would have been too crowded with two car seats....ahhh, things are changing..... :)
Our neighbor Delaney turned 3 at the end of March, so we got to go to Monkey Business for her party. It's a giant warehouse full of bouncy slides and castles. I'm not sure who had more fun, Brad or Nolan! Delaney's sister Kennedy turned 1 a couple weeks ago, so we celebrated with her and a bunch of kids next door and he had a blast then too.
We headed to Indiana for a quick trip over Easter weekend to celebrate with my family. My dad turned 60 the following weekend so we got to celebrate his birthday too. We got lucky and had some great weather while we were there! My mom had her annual Easter Egg Party and the kids had a blast. She's done this forever, and I secretly can't stand coloring Easter eggs, so I'm glad she does so I don't have to!!! There were about 12 kids there and they all had a blast, icing sugar cookies, coloring eggs, and then hiding and hunting for a few hours. They all love Nanny/Polly! We also got to go to church with my parents and got to see my mom play in the bell choir. Brad had never seen that before, so he was impressed. It was a really nice service. We loved spending time with all my family and all the kids, but it was just too short of a weekend!
Brad's baseball season was supposed to start a few weeks ago, but every game so far has been cancelled due to weather. Not that we've had much of it at our house! But further west and south of us have had quite a bit. He's disappointed to say the least, but this Sunday should be his first game. Nolan and I will go to a few games, but I'm not sure how long he'll last...we'll just have to play it by ear I guess. Let's hope the Wolfpack have a good season!!
So we've had a busy couple of months!! We've been able to get together with a lot of our friends and have also had some nice relaxing weekends at home with just us. I promise to be better about updating the blog since I don't have any excuses now :) For now, enjoy the slideshow of pictures and the videos. The first video is from the middle of February and we were just having a blast in the bathtub. The other video is Nolan playing with his very first baseball glove that the Easter Bunny brought. Who do you think is more excited????? :)
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