Baby is on it's way!!!

For those of you who check the blog today, you will be the first to know that little "Homer" will be arriving today!!! My water broke about 7:30 this morning and I am just so excited I had to let everyone know. We will get some pictures on as soon as we can!!

BIG Belly

I had been asked to post a few belly pics. These pictures start when I was 5 months along (Decemeber 2008) and then at 6 months, 7 months and 8 months. I tried to take them around the 28th of each month since I am due April 28th. Only 3 more weeks to go!!! I have been pretty comfortable, I guess as comfortable as you can be. Walking has really done wonders for my comfort level but not so much for my tremendously swoolen ankles and legs!! My new favorite shoes are regular and fuzzy Crocs!! "Homer" dropped down about 2.5 weeks ago and since then I have been way more comfortable. Before that the little turd was sitting right under the right side of my rib cage making it hard to breathe and do anything (sit, lay down, even stand). Now we are much better pals that he decided to move down a little. Now I start my weekly visits to the doctor!! Last week I was checked, no dilation yet but almost completely thinned and starting to eface so that is a good sign (at least I hope it is). Went to the doc today too, nothing to report. No cervix check this time. She gave me a choice and so I opted to wait until next week (any of you mother's can understand that!). The kids and Nicholas and everyone else, especially Sam's basketball team, keep telling me I should give the kids their basketball back!! That is exactly what it feels like, a big basketball under my shirt. I will keep you all posted when "Homer" decides to make his or her appearance. My guess is April 16-18 sometime, don't ask why, just a hunch so we will see!! Have a super day and week!!

5th Grade State Basketball Tournament

This past weekend we were in Stoughton, WI for the first annual 5th grade girls Wisconsin State Invitational Championship Tournament. It was a fun but long weekend!! I didn't even have to play any games and I was pooped by Sunday afternoon!! It didn't help being 8 months pregnant and not being able to get comfortable on the bleachers but the weather was great and Nick and I took advantage of it and went for a walk through the town of Stoughton on Saturday. Stoughton is a little smaller than Chippewa Falls and has a lot of that old town Main St charm to it. The girls played well however it seemed as though they just couldn't make their baskets. Sometimes I swear there was saran wrap on the hoop as the ball went almost half way in and then came back out!! They put forth a lot of effort though!! Playing 4 games on Saturday and 2 on Sunday!! Unfortunately they lost the first 5 games but they did win their last game which was great since we lost to that same team earlier by 1 point!! They took 21st place out of 22nd but overall had a great time and learned a lot. The teams they got to play were very competitive and it was good to get them some competition all day instead of one game here and there. Coaches, players and parents learned a lot about what they need to work on for next year and we know how to plan for the weekend too. Sam, Nick and I are going to be playing a lot of horse this summer and definitely working on those free throws. It was a great season and Sam had some great coaches, thanks Dave and Mike!! Looking forward to next year already!! Sam never ceased to amaze us during games. She is getting pretty good at free throws and is an excellent defensive player but is also a very good point guard. We loved how she would "eye up" the girl she was guarding!! I really wish I would have had a camcorder to capture those looks. She would look the other girl up and down from head to toe very slowly and have this look on her face like "nothing's getting past me so don't even try!". And she definitely wasn't afraid to get in there to get a jump ball and would just rip it out of the other girls hand. I know I will need to tape a few games next year and hopefully capture those looks because I am sure she will still give them!! We are very proud of all of her effort this year!!

My Birthday and February happenings

Well it has been awhile since I have been able to update this. Fell behind on my goal in February but will hopefully redeem myself in March. Not a whole lot was happening in February and I am working full time on an afternoon/day shift split to train our newest dispatcher so I really have not had a lot of "free" time.

When it first starting melting we had a "lake" and "river" in our yard but then it froze again and the kids and Howie took advantage of having our very own skating rink in the back yard. Howie was a big chicken and would put his front two paws on the ice because he really wanted to play with the kids but then decided he better not and would run back towards the house!! Unfortunately this only lasted a few days.

I celebrated my 27th Birthday on the 24th. In many ways I feel like I should not be 27 already but in more ways I feel like I should be 37!! On Monday my mom & dad and grandpa came out and we had steaks on the grill (my fav) and on Tuesday for my birthday we ate supper at the Kokomo Island Cafe in the Mall of America. The kids were off school the entire week and so we ended up taking Samantha, her friend Molly, Ian and his cousin Caleb to Nickelodeon Studios at the Mall of America on Tuesday. Everyone had fun and I even got to get away for a bit to do some browsing/shopping by myself while Nicholas stayed with the kids. Katarina didn't go with because she went with her cousin Madison to the Great Wolf Lodge in WI Dells. I was able to find a few good bargains on some clothes for the kids and some baby stuff that I have been looking for (gotta love Marshalls!!).

Bloomer Jump Rope Competition

This past Saturday Sam participated in the 49th Annual "Rope Jump Contest World Championship Finals" in Bloomer. The first round she was one of 35 jumpers in grades 5 & 6 and was one of the top 5 with 52 and 54 jumps in 10 second for her two jumps!!! In the finals later that night she unfortunately caught her foot on her rope both times ended up with 42 and 44 jumps in 10 seconds. This got her 5th place!!! I am very proud of her dedication and determination to get to Bloomer and most of all her effort in doing her best. Her and a couple of friends hope to jump next year as 6th graders and try to beat the long time champion Alex Skaw whose record is 62 jumps in 10 seconds. I had promised Sam that if she made it this far last year I would jump in the adult portion however "Homer" kind of put a kink in that, maybe next year! Congratulations Sam and keep up the great work!!