March 24th Soren Update

We are still enjoying the beautiful spring weather. I think we are FINALLY getting over the colds we have had all month.

Erik has moved to a four day work week, and we have had 4 Fridays off now. I was really anxious about the new schedule. I think it is pretty brutal for Erik Monday through Thursday, so I don't know how he feels about it yet. I have been pleasantly surprised and am loving it. Even though he has a lot of catch up studying to do on the three day weekends, just having him home is nice. Running our errands on Friday is much quicker than fighting crowds on the weekends, so that is another bonus. I have really seen Soren's bond with his Daddy grow amazingly over the last few weeks - he is a happy boy when Daddy is home and is loving the extra time with Erik!

Last Friday, we went out to eat lunch at a Greek place we had only tried once before. It was delicious, and Soren gobbled everything we put on his plate. We also went with Erik to see him get his haircut. We were having some trouble with Soren thinking that haircuts were "owie", so I thought it might help. We ended up having them cut Soren's hair too. He was really good, and now he wants to tell everyone about the clippers: "buzzed like bees bzzzzzzzz".

Although we were all still feeling a little under the weather, we were able to spend some time outside at the park and in our yard this weekend too. The yard has been so great for me - Soren LOVES it out there. He insists on Chibi coming out on her leash, and the two of them will play for hours. I can't get enough of Phoenix in the winter/spring.

As for Soren, he is growing like a weed. I bought him several pairs of pants this winter that were way too long. He has had a growth spurt and now they all fit. We are going in for official stats in a week or so, but he is hovering around 3 feet tall and 29 pounds. His haircut and the height are making him look so grown up. He talks ALL the time. I understand 90% of what he says. I am pretty sure the rest are "real" words too, I just can't decipher the baby accent.

The other day I came into the kitchen to find Soren on a chair coloring all over my toaster oven with a sharpie. As soon as he heard me come in, he starting frantically saying, "I color paper, I color paper". I had a hard time being stern with him for breaking our rule of only coloring on paper, because I was trying not to laugh. It was the first time I had seen him act guilty when caught being naughty - I think EVERYTHING Soren does for the first time is cute to me!

I put a video up, it isn't too amazing, but Soren is talking and in the yard which are things he does a lot.

Ashley

IT'S DONE!

Well, after years of saving and planning, the yard is finally done! It isn't anything fancy, but we love it.

Here is what our yard looked like on Monday (and for 5 years before that):





On Tuesday night Erik & Soren went out to examine the completed work:


And Thursday afternoon:



So in three days, we had a complete yard makeover. That beats DIY. Soren and Chibi had some fun in the yard today. I don't know if Soren had more fun than when we just had rock, but it sure makes me feel better!

Quick Soren Update

Happy Birthday, Erik!

Our family got a lovely gift for Erik's birthday - we are all creamed by a nasty cold. I don't feel like sitting in front of the computer, so this will be short!

We had a nice visit from Larry last weekend. We ran all over town enjoying some perfect weather. We visited the zoo and a Spring training game.

Here is Soren at the petting zoo:

Getting up close

On Monday, while Erik and Papa enjoyed a workout, Soren and I went for a quick treat. I decided to give Soren his first chance at his own cone. An extra treat was sitting in the front passenger seat (in the parking lot) while he ate it. He did great! Not even a drip on his shirt!
Yummy!
I'm sure there was more somewhere in there... but this will have to do for now!

Ashley

Baby Update

After a doctor's appointment on Friday and an ultrasound today, things are looking good. The baby is growing normally, and to Erik's disappointment, she is DEFINITELY a girl. We now have 153 days (21 weeks) left. Hopefully it flies by!

Soren was cute during the ultrasound. He kept jabbering about "beebee". I'm pretty sure he has no idea what is going to happen, but it was still fun to hear him talk about his sister.

Ashley