Graves Mountain Apple Festival

Yesterday we hopped in the car and headed west towards the mountains for an apple festival. Andrew grew up attending this annual event, and he knew both Ryder and I would enjoy it. We know we won't have too many opportunities for weekend getaways as a family of three, so we wanted to take advantage of it. The rain that was expected in the afternoon blew right over us, and it ended up being a beautiful day. We brought home a box of fresh-picked apples and one tired little boy, so the day was a success!

Andrew and Ryder went on the hayride together, and of course Ryder's favorite part was seeing the "big tractor".

It's starting to look like fall!

crates and crates of apples

Andrew and Ryder waiting to get off the hayride

an ENORMOUS cow--I wish Ryder had been standing closer to the fence for a size comparison.

the back of an antique fire truck parked at the farm

"dirty fire truck", as Ryder called it

Ryder wanted to climb every animal's pen. Luckily the animals were used to so much attention and were very friendly. This cow licked Ryder's shoe and his hand before the visit was over.

"Hi, cow!"

digging in (and throwing!) the rocks

my adorable little bee

climbing...again

Playing with the animals + running up and down the hills = passed out!

Pregnancy update: 32 weeks

Baby Girl has definitely hit a growth spurt! By the end of most days I feel so heavy that I have a hard time believing I will last 8 more weeks. I had a doctor's appointment on Wednesday, and a C-section is officially scheduled for Nov. 27 unless she decides to come earlier on her own. I asked my brother if he minds possibly sharing a birthday with his niece, and he's okay with the idea. :) Even Auntie Ali is fine with possibly sharing her birthday on the 23rd, so we'll just have to wait and see!

32 weeks

Me:

blood pressure: 125/65

total weight gain: 15 lbs.

belly measurement: 33 cm. (This means I'm measuring a week ahead of schedule now since I just turned 32 weeks today). The doctor is going to keep a close eye on this at my next appointment and possibly order an ultrasound to determine the size of the baby so we know what we're working with!

Baby:

heart rate: 145

She is very active, especially in the evenings when I finally have a chance to sit down and put my feet up. She's like a pinball, literally bouncing around and causing my belly to take on some strange shapes! I'm very curious as to what her personality will be like because she already makes me laugh. :)

Ryder: 21 months

In the pictures above he was being silly and saying "Boo!" Needless to say, I think he's too adorable to be scary. :)

New developments:

• recognizes opposites:
• 'big' and 'little'....he will even use a high squeaky voice if something is little, and a low deep voice if it's big
• recognizing when lights or fans are 'on' or 'off'
• 'open' and 'close'
• 'clean' and 'dirty'
• 'inside' and 'outside'
• knows the moon and stars are out at "night-night" when it's dark
• knows that 'green means go' and 'red means stop' (He's quite the backseat driver now when we reach a traffic light!)
• loves to watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse ("Mick Mou") on Disney Jr., and Goofy is his favorite
• identifies certain letters of the alphabet no matter where he sees them: D for Daddy-o, M for Mommy, P for puppy (or Pops), R for Ryder, A for Ashley (or Ali)
• says "Boo!" to get a reaction out of you (the crazier you react, the better!)

Expanding vocabulary:

It seems like his word bank has increased exponentially over the last month, so here are some of the most noticeable new words, in no particular order. (They don't all sound exactly like they should, but he's understandable and consistent with them!)

• pillow
• bed
• truck
• van
• firetruck
• airplane
• window
• kickball
• socks
• shoes
• tie-dye (Hmm, I wonder how he ever learned this one?)
• T.V.
• remote
• tools
• turn (He will say 'turn, turn, turn' as he twists a lid on or off)
• stuck
• ice cube
• milk
• cold
• cereal
• school
• pool
• chocolate (He loves the chocolate Teddy Grahams, or 'chocolate bears')
• pumpkin
• drain (At the end of bath time, he grabs all of his toys before they can go down the drain!)
• colors (red, blue, green, yellow, pink, purple, brown, orange, white)  He uses them correctly most of the time!

It's so hard for me to believe that 2 is just around the corner!

Mowing, golfing, and kickball

We are loving the fall temperatures we've had over the past couple of days. Ryder has had so much fun playing outside that we've had to bribe him with various things just to get him to come back in the house! One of his favorite activities is kicking a ball around the yard with Daddy; he giggles while kicking or throwing the ball into the woods just far enough for Daddy to have to go get it. He also has fun just running up and down the hills and asking "what's that?" about practically everything he sees.

"Golf, anyone?"

drinking from Mommy's "big cup"

starting up his mower!

"hiding" behind the pampus grass

Notice the fall Snoopy flag on the right? Ryder has been slightly obsessed with Snoopy over the last week, so there was no question about which flag to put out this year!

just like Daddy

"No, Mommy, it would not be easier if I just sat on the step."

on a mission

The garden has been torn up for a few weeks, but Ryder found a baby potato still hidden in the ground. "Tato!"

Pregnancy update--30 weeks

This week was much better for me than last week. :) Despite the fact that I began my week with the 3-hour glucose test, it was worth it the next day when I got the call that all of my numbers were in the normal range and I don't have gestational diabetes. I had another doctor's appointment on Wednesday and was proud to report to my doctor that my heartburn had vanished (keeping my fingers crossed) and I was feeling much better. We had the C-section vs. VBAC discussion, and my doctor is completely supportive of whatever I decide. I'm definitely leaning towards another C-section if Baby Girl promises to be as big as Ryder was. If that's the case, I can go ahead and schedule an appointment for 39 weeks, which is the week of Thanksgiving. I'll have to see how things go between now and then because I definitely don't want to eat my turkey dinner in the hospital if I have any say about it!

30 weeks

Me:

Belly measurement: 29 1/2 weeks (right on track)

Weight gain: not sure since last time; I'll have to pay closer attention at my next visit!

Baby:

Heart rate: upper 140's

Heavy! I swear by the end of the day she is as low as she can be, using my bladder as a pillow. And she's only going to get bigger....

Next appointment--> October 3rd