Christmas Entertainment

Camryn's version of 2 favorite Christmas carols. Please excuse the itchy nose!

Randomness

I have been absolutely terrible at updating the blog and even worse at updating the website. I am making the website my project over Thanksgiving and Christmas break. I vow to update it and keep it updated. Hopefully, I can do it. I enjoy it, but I just haven't been making the time to do it. I have a million pictures on the computer just waiting to be published. In time, they will get their chance.

In the meantime, I decided it would be a good idea to post a little update about the kiddos. I have read about people turning their blogs into books, and I think that is a great idea. I wouldn't want a huge gap, so I am going to try to sum up the last few months with them. It may be random, but if I post it, I must think it is important. :)

Camryn

• She is thriving at daycare now that it is more of a preschool atmosphere. She loves the projects and soaks up everything like a sponge.
• She can now recognize almost every letter in the alphabet and loves to yell out, "C for me!! G for Greyson!! K for Kirsten!! P for Peyton!!" every time she sees a letter she knows and whose name it starts with.
  
• She has started gymnastics and loves it. She seems to have a little crush on her instructor, Chuck. She puts forth her best effort, but refuses to let go of his hand on the balance beam.
• She is addicted to her Kidz Bop CD. Her favorite song is "Boom Boom Boom" and always wants it turned up louder.
  
• She knows how to spell her name and loves to spell it over and over and over again.
• She is very protective of Greyson.
• She is now completely potty trained. She wore pull ups only at night, but they are now a thing of the past.
  
• Camryn is constantly singing. She is very well-rounded and will go from a religious song from school to a song like "Shake your groove thing" in a heartbeat. She also picks up the words to songs on the radio and you can always hear her singing along in the backseat.
• She loves old school cartoons like Scooby Doo, Tom and Jerry, and Pink Panther.
• She enjoys working on her computer and is becoming a pro with using it and playing games on it.
• She enjoys playing board games like Chutes and Ladders as well as Memory and Uno Moo. She doesn't like to lose, but we are working on it!
  
• She got a trampoline from Gina and Paul and she is constantly jumping on it.
• She loves to help us cook and bake.
• She continues to love books, reading, and going to the library.
• She emphasized over and over again that she wanted to be a GOOD witch for Halloween and not a bad one.
• She began giving us a list for Santa quite a while ago.
  

Greyson

• At 1 month, he weighed 10 lbs 11 oz (75th %ile) and was 22.5 inches long (84th %ile)
• At 2 months, he weighed 13 lbs 3 oz (85th %ile) and was 24.5 inches long (94th %ile)
• At 4 months, he weighed 16 lbs 1 oz (73rd %ile) and was 26.75 inches long (95th %ile)
• When compared to Camryn, he definitely weighs less than she did, but is much longer and has none of the rolls she did at this age!
• He has been sleeping through the night since about 3 months of age. Even when he was getting up, he only got up once to eat.
• He loves to watch Camryn sing and dance around.
• He has recently started eating cereal, but doesn't show a lot of interest in it yet.
• He can hold his own bottle and enjoys feeding himself while we hold him.
• He loves his exersaucer and has recently started to use his jumperoo and enjoys making the toys sing as he jumps.
• He constantly has his hand or something in his mouth. He is the exact opposite of Camryn since she was never really an oral baby.
• He has more drool than any baby I have ever seen. He constantly has to have a bib on or we will be changing outfits a million times a day. We have no idea how he has so much saliva in his little body!!
• He still loves his swing and is content to swing most of the day if we would let him.
• He is following in Camryn's footsteps by becoming attached to a bunny bear, but his is blue. :)
• He enjoys music and loves being sung to.
  
• He is very observant of the world around him and tries to grab at everything!
• We think that he is going to be a handful in the future..he already knows how to manipulate his teacher at daycare and gives a sneaky smirk when you catch on.
  
• He loves his baths and gets upset when we take him out.
  
• His smile and giggle can light up the room.

As for Chris and I, we are still trying to find the balance between the kids, work, and each other. We wouldn't trade it for the world, but we are exhausted! We were lucky enough this past weekend to get an entire weekend to ourselves in Philly. Pappy and Janet stayed here with the kids while we got to be alone. It was heaven! We stayed in a beautiful hotel and soaked in the silence and sleep! It felt good to come home to the kids, though. I just started Zumba classes and love it. It kicks my butt, but that is what I need to lose this last extra baby weight! It is definitely a fun way to work out!!! Now, we are getting ready for another trip to Meadville for Thanksgiving. A turkey dinner cooked by my mom is just what I need!!!

Oh my....

Before it has been 2 full months without a post, I decided I better get on the ball! I really have no excuse other than the fact that I was trying to enjoy the summer! And, now, work is so incredibly stressful that I am looking for any and every opportunity to put it out of my mind! Let's see if I can sum up our summer in a short amount of words...

When I last wrote, we were getting ready for a trip to Meadville. It was a successful trip with both kids. And, it always helps that PSU is a great stopping point!! We spent some time there for Arts Fest on our way to Meadville and were able to meet up with some friends. Of course, this included getting Greyson on the Lion! I love being able to say that both kids were on the Lion by 5 weeks of age!! Obnoxious, I know. Our trip to Meadville was as eventful as it could be. We went to Waldameer (where Camryn rode her very first real roller coaster and LOVED it), Pymatuning to feed the gross carp, Hank's, Eddie's, and to the beach in Erie. Needless to say, Camryn had a great visit with Grandma and Papa and they really enjoyed having Greyson around.

After we got back from Meadville, we had a fairly low key summer. Camryn spent some time at the pool, library, and outside playing. We also made a trip to The Whitaker Center (a science museum in Harrisburg), The Children's Garden at the Hershey Gardens (complete with an awesome butterfly house!), and The National Aquarium in Baltimore. The majority of our time (well, Chris' time) was spent working hard on finishing our basement. It is almost done...just need to install the ceiling. Yay!

We have been back to work now for a few weeks. Greyson is adjusting to daycare really well and Camryn is loving every second of being with the "big kids". I absolutely love seeing the activities she does during the day - she is so proud of her accomplishments! Work absolutely sucks for me this year for several reasons, but that could be a whole post in itself. I ask Chris if I can quit every day, but he keeps telling me we have bills to pay. Ugh.

Well, it has been a long time since I even started writing this post. I need to keep up with it more often like I used to. The website is long overdue as well...poor Greyson is 14 weeks old and he only has pictures posted from his first 2 weeks. I will get to it soon...I hope.

Some Summer Fun

I realized it has been 2 weeks since I wrote last, so here is another little update. Nothing too much has been going on - still trudging along as a happy family of 4. We have settled into a routine and try to get out and about as much as possible going to the pool, Gymboree, the library, shopping, etc. We have also enjoyed some visitors the past few weeks. Steph, Scott, Sarah, and Brooke flew up from Florida to visit family in Jersey, but they drove here to see us first. I miss them so much and wish we lived closer. Sarah and Camryn played together so well and we all enjoyed watching them dress up as princesses. After they left, Camryn asked if we could go to Sarah's house to play - maybe some day!! We also enjoyed a visit from Rebecca. She was driving back to Jersey from Texas and she wanted to meet Greyson. More importantly, we went to lunch and it got me out of the house alone! I am extremely glad I got to see some of my friends - I miss them!!!!

We had a wonderful July 4th. We went to a picnic at a friend's house that day and were looking forward to fireworks that night. This was the first time that we decided to let Camryn stay up to watch them and she was SO excited. Fortunately for us, we can see our town's fireworks from our house and we have a perfect view of them from the park across the street. While we were waiting for them to start, Camryn entertained herself (and us) with sparklers. We weren't sure how she was going to react to the fireworks, but as soon as they started, she was in awe. She LOVED them. She kept yelling "Wow, they are huge" and telling everyone what colors they were. It was so cute. Greyson enjoyed them too...fast asleep wrapped up in a blanket in my arms. I love fireworks and watching them through Camryn's eyes was even better!!!

Last week, we made a purchase that has made Camryn very happy. We decided to buy a mini netbook so that she can begin to learn how to use a computer. We were just going to keep our old desktop for her to use, but we decided this was a better option. It is a small laptop that is a perfect size for her and it doesn't take up much room. And, more importantly, there isn't anything on it that can be "ruined" since it is mostly just a computer for the internet. She loves that she has her own little computer and she is getting better at using the mouse and playing various educational games. It is scary to think that a 3 year old is using a computer, but we feel like it is necessary for her to learn and be comfortable with computers. We have been having fun teaching her how to use it and she has even more fun playing games with her favorite TV characters. I told Chris that she is officially spoiled now, but he responded that we aren't spoiling her...we invested in her future. Yeah, I guess that sounds better!

Greyson had his 1 month well baby visit today. It is hard to believe that he is a month old already! Time goes way too fast! He now weighs 10 lbs 11 oz (75th percentile) and is 22 1/2 inches long (84th percentile). Apparently, he hasn't grown in the past 2 weeks, but they are pretty sure there was a mistake in measurement at some point in time. And, surprisingly, they said that they would have liked to see him gain a few more ounces in the past 2 weeks, but he is doing great. I have never heard that before! Camryn was always gaining lots of weight, so I assumed Greyson would be the same!! Oh well - I keep telling him not to grow up too fast. Maybe someone around here is actually listening to me!!! Anyway, Greyson is proving to be very content and goes with the flow. And, more importantly, he is letting us sleep for about 5 hours at a time. Camryn smothers him with kisses every chance she gets and continues to be quite protective. She is always trying to help us with him and wants him to be happy. I think this picture proves just how much she loves him - she even shares Bunny Bear with him!! That day, she thought he needed some Bunny Bear cuddles, so she gave her to him and said, "Here, you can use Bunny Bear for a while." That is love.

This week, we are getting ready to go to Penn State for Arts Fest and to Meadville to visit my parents. It will be our first official "trip" with 2 kids. Should be fun!

Official Stats

Both kids had pediatrician appointments today - Camryn for her 3 year check-up and Greyson for his 2 week check-up. Camryn loves going to the doctor and enjoyed being a big girl. She is officially 35 lbs (83rd percentile) and 38 3/4 inches tall (85th percentile). The doctor said she is doing great in every way! Greyson checked in at a whopping 10 lbs (80th percentile) and 22 1/2 inches tall (96th percentile). It is hard to believe that he is that big already!! I guess we were never meant to have a newborn! Although, I guess it is nice because he eats an average of 4 oz already and sleeps in 5 hour stretches at night. I know he is only 2 weeks old, but I feel like time is moving too quickly!! My babies are growing up - I am not sure I like it!!

On an unrelated note, I updated the pictures on the website yesterday. I told you I would get on the ball sooner or later!!

A family of 4

I know it has been forever since I last wrote. We have been a little busy! The end of the school year was rather hectic for me and it was getting increasingly more difficult the bigger my belly got! Once the school year was over, I only had one day "off" before I was scheduled for my c-section. And, as everyone already knows, we welcomed Greyson Kai Sweitzer at 10:28 AM on June 5th. He came into the world weighing 9 lbs 7 oz and was 21.5 inches long. I knew the baby was big, but not that big!!! All went very smoothly and Camryn loved him from first sight. We brought him home on Monday, June 8th and we have been adjusting to family life with 2 kids. It has actually been a pretty smooth transition even though recovering from the c-section sucks. Grandma and Papa came for a few days, which was wonderful. During that time, we had an early birthday party for Camryn and she had a blast! It was all about her that day and she ate all of the attention up!! This week, Chris is taking a week long class at PSU York, so I have been all on my own. It has gone really well and would be even better if I didn't still have restrictions from surgery and I was feeling better. Oh well. Soon enough. We have a million pictures to share on the website and I plan on updating it soon. I am sure you all understand why it isn't updated yet!! :) I promise to be more on top of things from now on.

A BIG BIG Girl Room

Camryn's new room is finally finished. We managed to keep it a secret until it was completely done. The last time she saw it, Chris had just started to put the pink on the walls. She was so excited since she requested pink. She saw her new furniture in the store when we ordered it, but she had no idea when it was delivered. She kept asking when her room was going to be ready and we told her that daddy was still working hard on it and her new bed had to come. Finally, Chris finished the painting last week, so we went shopping for bedding on Friday night. We had no idea what we wanted, but we took along the paint swatches and hoped for the best. We ended up finding a cute quilt set with matching wall decorations that matched the paint. Camryn liked the flowers and butterflies on the bedding, so we went for it. That night, we put her to bed in her old room and got to work putting the finishing touches in her new room. We stayed up late washing the bedding and putting the flowers and butterflies up. Then, Saturday morning, Camryn and I went to Gymboree without daddy while he moved the last piece of unwanted furniture out of there. When we got home, it was ready for the big reveal. She went upstairs looking for daddy and I told her to open the door into her new room and she walked in. Her face was priceless. She said, "mommy, look!!!" while she pointed to everything. It was adorable. She immediately tried to climb up on her bed and looked at all of the flowers and butterflies on the walls. Then, she moved to her "reading corner" to read a book. After that, she skipped around the room saying "lots of room!!!!" She loved it! She played in there for a while and when it was time to get some lunch, she said, "Mommy, leave my room painted!!!" I guess that was her stamp of approval. She took a long nap in there that afternoon and we didn't hear a peep from her at all that night. It is just funny to see her tiny little body curled up in such a large bed. It is a good thing we have another baby coming because she is certainly not our baby anymore.

Our other excitement this weekend (at least for me) was Mother's Day. I got to sleep in and Camryn gave me my wonderful cards when I got up. She was so excited about the cards (and the present she made me at school) - it was so cute. We planned on going to lunch, but first, we had to take our annual Mother's Day pictures. I have asked Chris to take a picture of us since our first MD together and it is now part of my "gift". We got some cute ones in the park across the street and we went to lunch. After that, Chris finally found the gift he had been looking for all week (the one from Camryn) - a digital picture keychain. But, my real present is tomorrow after school. I am taking a trip to the spa for my pregnancy massage and I can't wait!!! I had one when I was pregnant with Camryn and it was pure heaven. I am at the point now where I am getting really uncomfortable, so it is much needed. There is absolutely nothing like being pampered!!!!

We are...a PSU family!!!

I am finally on top of things! Of course, the 90 degree heat outside probably has something to do with that...I don't want to do anything other than sit inside in the air conditioning! Pregnancy and heat are not a good combination!!! Even though pregnancy and heat don't mix, we still made our annual trip to PSU yesterday for the Blue/White game. Camryn has been looking forward to it for a while now and kept asking every day if we were going to Penn State. She kept talking about seeing the Lion, the stadium, football players, and cheerleaders. Her wish finally came true. Once we got there, she waited patiently in line for the Lion (thankfully, it wasn't too long when we got there) and was so excited when it was her turn to give it a kiss and sit on it. Then, we headed to tailgate with our friends. When we got in the car to go to the stadium, she was so worried and asked "Are we going home??" It was so cute. A few of our friends have little girls too, so she had fun tailgating with her Penn State friends and kept asking if we could go in the stadium. We went in around 1/2 time so she could see some of the game and her eyes lit up as soon as we got in there. She danced right along with the THON dancers during 1/2 time and enjoyed some frozen lemonade with us. It was really hot in there (it was close to 90), so we didn't stay too long because I was beginning to feel miserable sitting in the heat. We checked out the carnival outside and she played a game. She really wanted to ride the rides, but the lines were too long and we were thankful that the games distracted her!!!! When we were walking back to the car to tailgate a little more, she kept asking "We are still here? We aren't going home yet?" It is amazing how much she loves being there. She knows we love PSU, but there is no way to brainwash her actually not wanting to leave there!!! It must be in the air! Once we finally got in the car to go home, she was ready after a long fun day of playing. Needless to say, she crashed in the car and took a little nap on the way home. We all spent today trying to recover from the long day yesterday. I am paying today for all of that walking and being in the sun!! Chris is a trooper, though and painted the majority of Camryn's new room. We are getting her new furniture tomorrow, so we are hoping we can make the transition soon. Oh, and the basement needs to be done, too. So much to do and only 6 weeks left to do it all. Yeah, panic mode is starting to set in.

PS Lots more pictures on the website!!!

Eggs, Bunnies, and Trains

We hope everyone had a wonderful Easter! We definitely did! Personally, I think we need more holidays that can be used as a bribe for good behavior. Saying "I am going to call the Easter Bunny and tell him not to come" worked just as well as it did with Santa! Terrible, I know, but very effective when dealing with a toddler with a very independent and moody streak!! Camryn was really looking forward to the Easter Bunny coming and "hiding eggs for me to find." She had an Easter Egg hunt at school, so she was really looking forward to finding eggs here on Easter and thought it was really cool that the Easter Bunny would be hiding them. We were hoping to take her to a community egg hunt on Saturday, but the weather was definitely working against us that day because it rained all day. Because we didn't get to do that, we decided to have another surprise for her after she found her basket and eggs on Easter. Daddy made a yummy breakfast for all of us and we were off to her surprise. The Strasburg Railroad has a special Easter Bunny train ride complete with the Easter Bunny as a passenger. It is a vintage coal burning steam train and Camryn was extremely excited as soon as she found out we were going to ride the real train. She was all smiles while we were waiting for the train to arrive back in the station and when we boarded. She got a real kick out of the train whistle, seeing the Easter Bunny (especially since she got a lollipop), and watching the scenery pass by the windows. It was fun for all of us and it is always more special to see it through her eyes.

There are many more pictures on the website as well. Enjoy!!

Friend Filled Weekend!

I meant to write about this before now, but I didn't get the chance - big surprise. We all had a wonderful weekend full of friends and fun. Paul and Gina came Friday night and stayed until Sunday afternoon. And, Rebecca joined us on Saturday for a visit as well. Camryn was ecstatic to have visitors to play with, especially since she gets their undivided attention!! We started off Saturday morning by stuffing our faces at the best buffet in the world - Shady Maple. Then, after we met Rebecca at our house, we went to Intercourse to enjoy some Amish fun. They have a cute little shopping village that we all enjoyed. Camryn especially enjoyed the area with animals to feed. In the past, she has always kept her distance from animals, but she was all about feeding them that day! She showed no fear and fed the goats and llamas and kept asking for more food. It was great!! And, she even pet a horse without any fear! And, I will say that I think all of us adults had just as much fun as she did feeding the animals...at least the boys in the group did!! Later that day, we looked at the pictures and watched the video from Gina and Paul's wedding. It was hilarous because Camryn was only interested in the pictures and parts of the video that contained her. She kept asking "Where's me???" Finally, we ended that night by going out to dinner at a bar/restaurant. It felt good to be out and about with friends!

On Sunday morning, Camryn had a gift to open from Gina and Paul. It was a fun play cupcake set with all of the supplies to make her own real cupcakes. So, her and Gina made cupcakes early that morning. Camryn had the time of her life!! She has been showing a great interest in cooking lately, so this was the perfect gift!!! She helped Gina with every step of the process and you could tell that she was very proud of herself. She is definitely not my baby anymore!! She was very sad when all of our visitors left and kept asking where everyone went. She didn't like that everyone had to go home. :(

We are now down to counting only single digit weeks until this blog will contain stories about another little one. I am officially 30 weeks into this pregnancy and have only 9 more to go. I have a c-section scheduled for June 5th, so I know we won't have to wait any longer than that. I am aware that this baby may not wait to make its appearance that day, but I hope it does. My last day of work before summer break is June 3rd, so I am hoping everything goes as planned. That only gives me one full day "off" for the summer. Should be fun!!!

Spring is in the air!

It has been nice a few days in the past week, so we have a major case of Spring Fever. It snowed a little over a week ago, but then, it was in the 70s just a few days later. No complaints here!! When we left for Gymboree Saturday morning, Camryn was so confused when we told her she didn't have to wear a coat. She went outside, looked up into the sky, and said, "Hey, it is warm!" Later that afternoon, she loved every minute of being outside and riding her bike in the park. Unfortunately, it hasn't been that warm for the last few days, but Spring is definitely in the air!!!

And, I know I haven't done it in a while...the website finally has some new pictures on it if you are interested. Enjoy!!!

"Trains Are Fun!!!"

Cabin fever has started to set in. We have had a few "teaser" days where the weather was really nice, so it makes us want Spring faster. But, the reality is that it is only February. Ugh. We had a long weekend, so we wanted to do something fun to get out of the house. Unfortunately, we have exhausted most of the "winter" options within a 2 hour driving radius. Then, Chris mentioned we should go to the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania in Strasburg today (a short 20 minute drive from home). Camryn has been pretending to make "trains" out of blocks and various objects lately, so we figured it would be exciting for her. I will admit that I was not all that excited about going to a train museum and had no idea what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised. Instead of seeing pictures and reading about the history of trains (this is exactly what I was expecting), we got to see actual trains in a HUGE museum. It really was a lot of fun to see the old trains. Camryn was SO excited and ran from train to train. The only downfall to the museum was that it isn't heated in the winter - that would have been nice for Chris and I to know before we left our coats in the car!! Camryn was nice and toasty with her coat - good thing! After walking around the huge museum looking at the trains, she had fun playing with several toy sets in the children's area. There is also a train station across the street where you can ride in a vintage train, but we decided to do that another day when it isn't so cold! The whole ride home, Camryn kept saying, "Trains are fun!" Who knew trains could be so much fun?!?

Oh, and of course, how could I forget Valentine's Day? Camryn started her festivities on Friday with a Valentine party at school with all of her friends. She signed up to take cheese curls to her party and she was so excited for her "job" all week. She kept asking me, "I take my cheese curls to school today?" I kept having to tell her she had to wait until Friday. She was all ready that morning dressed in her "Valentine shirt and pants" and she had her cheese curls and Dora valentines in hand. When I picked her up that afternoon, she had a bag full of cards and treats and she was excited to tell me all about her day. Then, on Saturday, we went to Gymboree as usual and went out for a nice lunch as a family. I am not sure she has any idea what Valentine's Day is all about, but she sure did have fun wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Dancing Diva

Camryn has become quite the little music diva. She has always loved to dance and sing, but she has stepped it up a notch lately. She has even started to tell us to "turn it up" when we are in the car so she can listen to her "favorite song". Her favorite song varies from day to day, but she knows the words!!! Right now, it seems her favorites include "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz, "Low" by Flo Rida, and "Whatever You Like" by TI. It is hilarious to hear her singing in the back seat!! And, of course, she still loves her Laurie Berkner. She also makes up her own songs and dance steps at home and insists that we watch her every move! Her favorite place to perform is her "stage" (the steps up from the living room). She stands up there and sings her heart out while she twirls and twirls. Then, the other day, she spotted the turkey baster in the kitchen drawer. She immediately claimed it as her microphone - completely on her own! Needless to say, she has been doing a lot of performing with her new microphone! This picture was taken tonight while she was performing - complete with "feather boa" and her hand on her hip. Yup, definitely a little diva!

It isn't all song and dance, though. She has a serious side, too. She continues to love books and is constantly asking us to read t0 her. When we are busy and tell her to read it to herself, she claims that "I can't read the words!" Usually, this prompts us to drop what we are doing to read to her - it is hard to resist and we hope she continues to love books like Mommy and Daddy. In order to do this, we started taking her to the library to pick out her own books. Granted, she has hundreds (literally) of books in her own library at home, but the public library is a special experience. Some of my earliest memories include going to the library every week with my mom and I loved it. So, I wanted to share this with her. We picked out several books this past weekend and she has requested to read them over and over. She is even content looking at them herself. In this picture, she is spending time with one of her favorite picks, "Edwina, The Dinosaur Who Didn't Know She Was Extinct" by Mo Willems (one of our favorite authors).

By far my favorite part to her personality lately is her sweet and loving nature. Sure, she has tons of energy like any toddler and can throw a tantrum with the best of them, but she has so much love and compassion to give. She is very aware of the baby in Mommy's belly (it is pretty hard to ignore the large bump!) and knows when Mommy's belly isn't feeling so good. She will immediately come over and want to kiss it to make it all better. Then, tonight, I was sitting with her before bed and I told her Mommy had a bad day at work. She said, "You had a rough day?" I was amazed at her response and I told her it was a rough day. She looked at me and said, "tomorrow will be better." How can you argue with that? Watching her grow is absolutely amazing.

Overdue Update

I know, I know...I said I would write again a long time ago, but this has been pushed down on my list of priorities. We have been dealing with sickness and more sickness, so we have all been too exhausted to do much more. So, here it is...a long overdue update. I will try not to write a novel!

I think I last left off right before Christmas. As you can see from the pictures on our website, Camryn had a wonderful Christmas season. She LOVED making cookies for Santa. She was such a big girl and helped with every step of the process. I really had to step back and let go of the control - as soon as I did that, it was all good. And, I must say that she did a very good job! Santa must have been very appreciative because he ate the ones she put out for him. Speaking of Santa, he actually came a day early for us since he knew we would be traveling to see Grandma and Papa on Christmas Eve. She woke up on Christmas Eve to a lot of presents under the tree just for her! The big highlights included a stuffed Rocket (she is obsessed with The Little Einsteins), a digital camera, and a huge doll house. She must have been a really good girl because Santa left way too much stuff for her. He certainly must not have seen any of the temper tantrums she has been known to have lately!! Later that day, we made the 5 hour trip to see Grandma and Papa in Meadville for a few days. We were looking forward to lots of snow for Camryn to play in, but there wasn't any!! What is up with that?!?! We had a wonderful time there and Camryn got to play with Zachary. It was a great trip, but it always goes so quickly. Luckily, when we got home, we still had a week to enjoy before heading back to school. To conclude our holiday festivities, we had a little New Year's Eve party here at home. Camryn was lucky enough to stay up a little later and play with a friend of hers, Allison. And, of course, we were excited for the big Rose Bowl game on New Year's Day. Again, we had some friends over for the game and we were all decked out in our PSU gear. Unfortunately, it didn't help our Nittany Lions pull off a win, but we had fun anyway.

During that week at home, we had 3 doctor's appointments to keep us busy. On Monday, we went to "Mommy's doctor" to check on the baby. On Wednesday, we had Camryn's 6 month follow up with the ENT to check on her tubes. Fortunately, the tubes are still in place and doing their job. They have been a life saver for her because she hasn't had one ear infection since she got them. Then, on Friday, we had her 30 month check up with the pediatrician. She officially weighs 33 lbs 15 oz (89%) and is 37 3/4 inches tall (91%). So, she is still our big girl!!! The doctor was very pleased with her progress and was very impressed to hear her talking in complete complex sentences. I guess I just take it for granted that she has always had above average verbal skills. Although, it is those same skills that are giving her the ability to argue and negotiate!!! Ahhh, the joys of a toddler!!!

Once we got back to school, we all tried to get back into the routine of it all. It is always difficult to do when you have so much time off to begin with!! Camryn was eager to get back to school to spend time with her friends - she must have been tired of spending time with boring mommy and daddy! After that, we finally did get some snow on Martin Luther King Day that stuck to the ground long enough for her to use her sled (it is about time - she got it for Christmas LAST year). So, we all went out to enjoy our little hill in the back yard. She was having a blast!!! She carried her own sled up the hill and giggled the whole way down again. She even let mommy and daddy ride with her a few times! I didn't think we were ever going to get her inside, but the promise of some hot chocolate did the trick!

Some more excitement included finally having our ultrasound to see this new little baby of ours. I was so anxious to see the little one and to see if everything is developing normally. Fortunately, everything appeared to be normal and the baby appears to be healthy and cozy. I love having ultrasounds and could stay there for hours watching. This time was different for us because they now have the 3D/4D technology at our doctor's office. It was amazing. Yes, it is a little creepy, but it is still amazing. We thought it was funny, though, because this little baby was acting identical to Camryn when we had her ultrasound - covering its face so we couldn't get a clear shot. Gotta love that this one is already acting like its older sister!!! The baby also appeared to want to suck its thumb - it kept opening its mouth and its little fist was right there - so close!!! Again, I could have watched for hours! And, of course, this baby is already measuring to be about a week ahead of where it should. It weighs approximately 15 ounces. So, I am assuming it is inevitable for me to have another large baby!! We also found out that my placenta is located in the front of my uterus this time. This isn't a problem at all, but Chris is irritated that I put my placenta where he can't feel the baby. The placenta acts like a cushion for all of the kicks and punches, so we don't feel it as strong as we would if the placenta was somewhere else. Sorry, Chris! And, no, we didn't find out what it is - it will be a surprise for all of us!!!

Last, but not least, poor Camryn has been having a rough few weeks. Last week, she caught a nasty bug that was going around her daycare. We had several fun filled days of vomiting and high fever. She has never been this sick and it was starting to really scare me. She wouldn't eat or drink and we couldn't get any Pedialyte in her at all. She was pathetic. She was so lethargic - a complte 180 from her usual personality. There wasn't much we could do for her. I was home with her on Friday and she didn't want to do anything. She didn't want to sit in the chair, cuddle, lay on the couch...nothing. She finally went into the kitchen, laid down on the floor and fell fast asleep. She NEVER sleeps anywhere other than in her bed, so this was very unusual. I tried to move her several times and she fought me every time - she wanted to stay there. She ended up sleeping there for an hour and a half! I felt like a terrible mother because I let her stay there, but it was the only thing making her happy! Finally, on Saturday, she started to show some signs of life again and began to eat a tiny bit. She was back to normal on Monday, so she went back to school. But, it wasn't over. We ended up having a snow day on Wednesday and we took her to the doctor for the terrible cough and congestion she has. So, she is back on antibiotics and her nebulizer treatments 3 times a day. Blah. It really never ends! We seem to go from one thing to the next, so I hope we get a bit of a break after this!!! I am not sure how much more she (or we) can take!

That brings us up to date. Good thing because I am tired and need a nap. Chris is playing Wii, so it seems like a good time to do that. Too bad as soon as I try, Camryn will get up from her nap. Yup, the story of our lives!

Finally...the website is updated!!

I have been a complete slacker with the website for a while - my apologies. I had every intention of doing it earlier, but it somehow kept getting pushed back on my list of things to do. I finally have it updated, so enjoy! I am also going to post a blog about our holidays and the past month or so, but that is going to have to wait until this weekend. Until then...have fun with the new pictures!