Vehicle Day

A few weeks ago, Southdale mall hosted a vehicle day. They had firetrucks, police cars, a snowplow, busses, a sheriff boat, and so many more exciting vehicles. Dax was in heaven and we even ran into his buddy Isaac while we were there. It was a really fun morning!

Little boy's heaven

School bus!

Bus driver Dax

Checking out a cherry picker

Ready to go!

Loving a little close up time with a snowplow

Look at those wheels!

Firefighter Dax

Cuties - Dax and Isaac

Such good buddies

Ending the day with a police car

Halfway

Time is flying and we are almost halfway through this pregnancy. I am equally relieved and excited to have made it to this point. Leading up to the ultrasound, I finally felt good about what we would hear and am so grateful to have found that peace.

(almost) 20 weeks

Although he's still a toddler, we decided that it would be fun to bring Dax along to our ultrasound so he could see the baby, hear the heartbeat, and hopefully make the idea of becoming a brother more tangible. While he has talked about the baby more since and continues to remind us what the heartbeat sounds like in his sweet voice, he was less than thrilled with the actual experience. We still enjoyed it, though.

We got to see gummy bear's limbs, organs, brain, and sweet face. Though we got lots of good views, it was not easy to determine gender as the little one was in a tough position with it's tiny legs crossed. After trying to turn a few times, we eventually got a peek. I was surprised and we were both excited to learn that it's a girl! She's healthy and growing and we could not have asked for a better visit.

Future drama queen? Her little hand was up on her forehead.

Baby feet

5 fingers!

Sweet girl

The best part was when the tech gave us photos to take home, she printed an extra copy of one especially for Dax. He was so happy to have his own photo and already shows some love for his little sister. We can't wait to see that love grow and a relationship develop.

Dax with his photo

Giving his sister some love

Chocolate chip pancakes to celebrate

Now we just need to go shopping!

17-18 Weeks

Our 16 week check was pushed back due to our vacation so we went in around 17 weeks. The little gummy bear was still going strong with a 145 BPM heartbeat. Yay!

Then, leading into the 18th week, I was feeling the baby move around more regularly. While it still wasn't consistent, I noticed it daily and would naturally put my hand there to see if I could feel it from the outside, too. While laying in bed one night - the baby tends to get more active when I am not - I finally could! I told Jake where I noticed it and he felt a little kick, too. It was such an exciting moment and made us fall even more in love with the sweet babe.

Next week we get to see him or her again on an ultrasound. Stay tuned!

Colorado

This spring break we decided to take a family vacation. An especially brutal winter, a little one on the way who will make travel more complicated, and a good deal on airfare worked together to send us out of town. We had a great trip! **It may seem like there are too many pictures in this post, but it was hard to narrow it down further from the over 200 we came home with! :)

Dax was thrilled to head to the airport and found every part of the trip magical. He spent most of the flight entertained by a new set of Lego cars. Then, once we landed we had to take a train to a bus to get to our rental car. It was a toddler boy's dream travel day!

The next day we drove down to Colorado Springs. The mountain views on the drive were incredible and the time spent with great friends was irreplaceable. Dax enjoyed playing with Andrew and Sarah's son Harvey and we were thankful to see them as well as Eric and Dava. As a bonus, Brian and Jenny had also driven down! We got to go on a relaxing hike in the mountains, played at a playground, and talked and laughed a lot. Thank you Andrew and Sarah for opening your home to us!

In the morning we were sad to say goodbye, but could not complain after a delicious breakfast out. Eric and Dava took us on a driving tour of the Garden of the Gods, then gave us a private tour of the Navigator's castle grounds Glen Eyrie. Both were amazing and we were lucky to see them.

After driving back up to Denver, we spent that afternoon at the Downtown Aquarium. It was huge and Dax enjoyed seeing all of the animals. Then we took a walk to the 16th Street pedestrian mall and had a fun dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe.

For our only full day in Denver we went to the zoo right as it opened. They had some amazing animals and Dax was so excited to see his favorites - zebras! After resting at the hotel we went back to the 16th Street Mall and then visited Jenny and Kevin for a yummy pizza dinner. It was awesome to see some more people that we miss!

We were sad to wake up on our last day, but could not waste any vacation time and headed over to the Museum of Nature and Science. Dax was happy to see the dinosaurs, ecstatic to dress up like an astronaut, and loved playing in the Discovery Zone. It was the perfect way to enjoy the end of our time in Denver.

The flight home was just as uneventful as the flight there and wrapped up a fantastic trip!