Ryan, Kaitlyn, and Colin Madden: May 2011

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Happy Mother's Day

My sweet little Munchkins before we went to Muffins with Mom at school.

Sweet, sweet, sweet!

Yes, we are pregnant again. Mike hates (and so does my family) when I say "we"...and it does sound kind of funny, but it is true. "WE" are pregnant again. Pregnant with our THIRD baby in less than 4 years...Can you key the insane music now. Because that is how I feel...insane. I was just finally grasping what it was like to have 2 children and wham...back at the beginning again!! I am not sure exactly how I will handle having 3 children who are barely 3.5 and younger, but from what everyone tells me (and from what I know must be God's humorous side), I can do it. It might not always be pretty, but I will survive this season of life too. :)

I am 14 weeks pregnant today. The baby is due November 5, but due to another c-section (because Kaitlyn was breech), I will be having the baby 5-7 days early. So, I can basically pick his/her birthday. That is kind of cool. We are kind of thinking Tuesday, November 1 for a number of reasons. Mainly though, we can't go into the hospital until Saturday, Oct. 29 at the earliest. This will put me in the hospital over the weekend (#1) and possibly without my doctor (#2), and it won't get me home in time for Halloween on that Monday night which I really don't want to miss with the current kiddos. So, with all of that said, I am thinking Tuesday, November 1. We will see how all of that works out. I am already showing way more than I did with R and K. (WAY MORE) I guess that is to be expected. I think I have been pregnant more months in the last 3-4 years than I haven't been. :)

I should enjoy this pregnancy though, because this. is. definitely. our. last!!!!!

Here are some pictures taken on Wednesday or our newest little munchkin

I am still really early, but they happen to grab this shot and couldn't tell if it was cord or "boy parts", but they seem to be leaning more towards boy...so, who knows. We go back for the "big ultrasound" on June 7.

Some pictures from Sunday after church.

These children NEVER both smile at the same time!!!

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Ride that Camel, woo woo

We don't make it to the zoo that often. We like it, but they have been doing some reconstruction and a lot of the exhibits have been closed, etc. So, we don't make it over there that often. Beth called us last Thursday and asked if we wanted to go. I checked my membership...sure, I have 2 days left. Better make use of the limited time we have. Let's go check out the new elephants, rhinos, camels, etc.

So, off we went to meet Beth and her friend. We had fun just walking around and we were coming up on the zebras and giraffes when I saw camel rides. I asked Ryan if he wanted to do one totally thinking he would say no. (I rode an elephant as a child and have always remembered that ride)

To my surprise, he wholeheartedly said YES!!!

So, up the stairs we went, paid our money, and onto the camel went Ryan. He had such a good time. He smiled and waved and talked the zookeeper's ear off. I one point I heard him detailing all of his booboos and the bandaids that went with them. (and there are a lot of boo boos to tell about.) I got some great pictures of Ryan riding his first camel. Just wish Mike could have been there to see it in person. I was so proud of Ryan!!

Beth and Jake decided they needed a turn after Ryan. They looked like they were having a great time. I was just getting around to taking the close up "money" shot when my camera battery died. Stupid thing...or stupid me for not charging it!

So, I didn't get that great up close shot, but I still got some of their ride.

climbing on the new playground by the elephants

getting on and so excited!

SUCH A BIG BOY!!

Beth and Jake having a blast

and, my camera dies right here.... so sad

April 24, 2011

This was one of those days that you just wish you had your video camera all day. Especially for this scenario. Ryan comes up to Mike mid-morning to tell him that, "it is a beautiful day for fishing. Let's get my Robin Hood out." aka fishing rod. We still aren't sure why he calls it his robin hood. Anyway, after that comment what can you say, but ok, you are right, it is beautiful. Let's go fishing!

So, off to the boat ramp they go with bread as bait and Ryan's robin hood in hand. Right off Ryan gets a bite, but the fish either lets go or something happens because just as quickly his fish is gone. Almost immediately another one comes along and this one sticks. Ryan gets very excited and reels it in, for the most part, by himself. Mike helps at the very end because Ryan is not understanding that you have to pull the rod up some to get the fish out of the water. Well, that should have been our first indication that we needed the video camera and that Ryan didn't really understand what fishing was. As soon as that fish made it to the bank and out of the water Ryan started running as fast as he could the other way shouting, "aaaahhhh, the fish is chasing me!!!!" Scared to death because the fish was coming out of the water after him. If I could have just caught it on video. Well, I had to run and get the still camera, so Gigi had to immediately rescue Ryan from his own fish and show him that this is the point of fishing. Mike and I are trying really hard at this point to contain our laughter. We just never expected this reaction. :)

So, after a few minutes Ryan was interested again in his fish...

Not bad for a first try!!

The first glimpse of, "a fish outta water"

The token "cheese smile" with his catch of the day

First Fish!

Annual Easter Egg Hunt

At the last minute, Mike and I decided to make a spontaneous decision and drive the kids home to SC for Easter. (we had originally planned on staying in Bham to attend some easter egg hunts and our church service on Sunday)

So, on Thursday morning at 8:15 we were packed and loaded up for the 6 hour trip...that usually takes us 7 or 8 since the kids arrived.

Anyway, we got to SC and had a great visit with Amy and Luke and got to attend a party Mike's parents were throwing for all of their friends to get to meet Luke since Amy doesn't make it home from Montana that often. That was really fun to get to catch up. We hung out Friday and on Saturday we had the Annual Easter Egg hunt at the lake. You will remember the last one here.

The whole family showed up and we had a great time playing with cousins...mine and Ryan's. The B's were out in full force and Ryan was more than ready to tackle the day with them. All of the kids went swimming and then took a boat ride with all the Dad's. (great day for Mom's this Easter) Then when they got back we ate and afterward had the Easter Egg Hunt with Francie, Suzanne, and Amanda leading the hiding efforts.

It was so fun to watch all of the kids find the eggs. Even Kaitlyn got in on the action. :)

We so miss being close to home and have these activities be the norm instead of the special treat. Can't wait for "one day" to be closer again.

Ryan finding his first egg

Bo, the seasoned pro

Ben getting a little height from Beth

Betsy!

Kaitlyn finding her first egg

She would not let that egg go!

Showing us his "spoils"

Ahh, 2 eggs...what could be better?

Weston & Suzanne

Francie, Diane, Suzanne, and Kaitlyn

Lovely me (yea right) with Kaitlyn

Gigi & Kaitlyn

I am Buzz Lightyear. I come in Peace.

Wow, I don't think I have ever seen a child want a toy more. See, our neighbor, Jake, got this toy over spring break back in the middle of March. Since the first day he came home, Ryan has coveted this toy. He asks for Buzz everyday to see if Jake is going to bring him outside. He talks about him not coming outside like Buzz is a real person. (and to Ryan, I guess he is) Anyway, after the first week of this I told Ryan that maybe he could ask the Easter Bunny for a Buzz Lightyear toy like Jake's. Well, ask he did and then every time we would talk about Easter and the Easter Bunny, Ryan would say that he hoped the Easter Bunny would bring him a Buzz "just like Jake's". So, of course, that is what the Easter Bunny brought. His very own Buzz Lightyear. The first picture is from the moment he saw his basket. I think he was a little in shock that his own Buzz Lightyear doll was right there in front of him. He was hesitant to pick it up...like it would be snatched away at any moment. (we were actually kind of worried for a few minutes that he didn't like it because he just kept staring at it instead of picking him up). We finally cajoled him into picking Buzz up AND that was the end of it. He still has yet to put Buzz down and it has been 2 weeks. He loves that Buzz like nothing I have seen before. He flies Buzz all over the house, pretends to be Buzz, talks to Buzz like he's a person, pushes all of his buttons until he finds his favorite, and sleeps with Buzz. I have to say that this was definitely a "Winner" of a gift. He rivals Doggy in love and attention...and for Ryan, that is a hard thing to rival. :)

asking if it is really his...

the first moment of picking him up...

The rest of his Easter basket

Kaitlyn's Easter basket

The moment she realized she had gifts too. :)

Seriously, holidays take on a whole new meaning when kids are involved.

(none of this is meant to downplay the true meaning of Easter which we all know is when our only Lord, Jesus Christ, died and rose again to take on all of our sins.) We could not be more grateful for the season and reason that we are celebrating. The Easter Bunny just happens to be a funny aside associated with the holiday. :)

Loving spaghetti night!!

Walker's 1st birthday

I would have had more photos of Walker, but I used Beth's camera when I was taking those. Walker had a fun birthday weekend and had all of us up to the pool pavilion to celebrate a little bit and eat some cake...eat a lot of cake as there were many cakes to choose from. :)

Happy 1st birthday Walker!!