We're back!

Me & my big girl

Greetings, everyone!  Sorry for the long break.  What can I say.... working full time, chasing around a two-year-old, and being pregnant don't leave me with much free time (or energy) these days.  But all is well at the Mekkelson household!  Lucy turned two in June (birthday party pics to be posted soon) and is a real character.  She's talking up a storm and saying the funniest things.  I really need to start writing them down.  She also saw her dad play a show for the first time (that she can remember) and is now enjoying "playing her horn" just like Dad.  

Also, everything is going well with the pregnancy!  I'm 32 weeks (7 months) and there have been no bumps in the road whatsoever.  Baby Max is due on October 14, and is actually measuring on the larger side (67th percentile at our last ultrasound earlier this month).  Imagine that!  Night and day from my last pregnancy, so I like to think that karma is paying me back in spades. 

For those who don't know, my sister is pregnant as well, and our due dates are only 2 days apart!  How special is that?

Cousins! 

Happy Easter!

There are few things cuter than little girls in Easter dresses.

First Dentist Appointment

Lucy made it though her first dentist appointment recently, but not without some serious protesting.  In fact, when she got her teeth cleaned, one would have thought that they were pulling her toenails out.  But the LW toughed it out and walked away with a pretty good report card.  She has 12 teeth now, and they're looking good in terms of not showing any signs of decay.  But the binky has got to go.  DUN DUN DUN...

Here she is enjoying a refreshing cup of water after the harrowing ordeal.  Drinking water from a real cup is a relatively new thing, and she is quite proud of it.

Pics and Announcement!

So... I am pretty horrible at updating this blog!  Part of the problem is that I feel obliged to write about what's going on, which always takes longer than it should, and time is not something I have in abundance these days.  So, how about I just drop a bunch of photos and dash outta here?  That's what everyone wants to see anyhow, right?

Also, I think most of our blog readers know, but we are thrilled to announce that we're expecting Baby #2 in October!!!  And we're even more thrilled to let you know that everything looks normal and healthy based on our 12-week ultrasound (which is when we found out about Lucy's gastroschisis).  So Lucy will be a big sister, and our Family of Three will soon be a Family of Four.  We are really excited and can't wait to meet little bro/sis!!!

Bath time

Playing in the sandbox is serious business.

On a walk with Dad, being goofy.

Still a binky-aholic.

Finger painting.

Excited to see the creatures at the Randall Museum (really excited!)

Driving at the park.

Taking a stroll through the neighborhood.

Little bro or sis (we find out next month) 

Belly nice and closed! 

Counting...

...without looking. Highly advanced.

Nakie Baby on the Loose!

Here's one that Lucy will probably hate me for when she's older... :)

Fun with the Xylophone

Here's Lucy having fun with her xylophone.

She's also in the middle of a language explosion, and is putting words together to form short sentences.  Officially on record are:

"I love you"
"Here you go"
"There it is"
"Thank you, Mommy" (without being asked!)
"Bye bye, Natoma!" (her friend from daycare)

Stickers, Stickers, Everywhere

Here's Lucy playing with her toy du jour, a vinyl sticker book.  As you can see she's a pretty talkative, silly girl these days.

18 Months Old

Lucy is 18.5 months old now, and boy are we busy!  She says a lot of words and is starting to say short sentences, usually when asking for "more" of something (More num nums!  More kitty!  More ba-ba!)  She understands most of what we say.  Whether or not she complies with what we say is a different story...  like most toddlers, she is quite the headstrong little thing!  She is definitely flexing her independent muscles and is regularly testing when and where mommy and daddy will draw the line.

Her favorite game is "night-night," where we all have to pretend to go to sleep and then wake up.  In order to play night-night, everyone involved requires the following: 1 pillow, 1 blanket, and 1 doll.  And of course, Lucy also needs her gocky (which is what she calls her binky because it has a duck, or "gock," on it).  No one can go night-night until each item has been secured in place.  Then we all lay down, pretend to snore, and then jump up and say, "good morning!!!"  Repeat 500 times.

She also knows how to operate an iPad, including swiping the button to turn it on and finding and opening her favorite apps.  She is really, really into it.  Currently her favorite app is Freight Train, which she calls choo-choo.  It's crazy, but I guess that's the world we live in!  Imagine - kids Lucy's age will never know a world without the internet or smartphones.  Fortunately we've been able to find some really cute, educational, and interactive apps.

Here she is doing some talking and animal sounds.  She's actually talking a lot more (and a lot more clearly) than this, but as you can see, it's tough for me to take videos these days without my phone being commandeered.  So this will have to do for now.