Our 20 Week Ultrasound: June 29, 2012

We had our 20-week ultrasound a little early as we had a change in insurance, but that didn't make it any less exciting. We decided to wait to find out the sex of Brendan's little brother or sister until he or she arrives. Though Ryan would have liked to know, he was ok with going along with my wishes to wait. And I couldn't be more excited. I can't wait until he (or she) gets here so we can find out! It makes delivery day that much more exciting. Everything looked great in the ultrasound. The baby is measuring good (a little big but that's nothing to worry about this early) and all of his/her little organs are functioning perfectly. We cannot wait to meet this new little one, and to add him/her to our family. Here are some of our favorite pics from the ultrasound:

This is a profile shot of Brendan's little brother or sister.

Here the image is looking down at the face. You can also see the little hands in this one.

And this one is my favorite. He (or she) is showing off the little foot.

Brendan's 1st Camping & Trout Fishing Trip: June 21-22, 2012

Now that he is a big 4-year-old, we decided that Brendan was finally ready for his 1st family camping and trout-fishing trip. He was so excited! We took him to Bennett Springs Trout Park as it is one of our favorite locations, and we were not disappointed. Brendan was able to pull in his first fish, and he almost hooked and pulled one in on his own (it got away at the last second...little rascal). He helped Daddy set up the tent, slept in his own sleeping bag, and was able to roast hot dogs over the open fire. We only stayed one night, but it went so well that we might even try for two next year! Another family tradition is started.

Brendan and Daddy set up our tent.

Daddy's first catch of the weekend.

Roasting hot dogs.

Brendan waits for the morning horn.

Though hooked by Daddy, this was the first fish that Brendan has ever landed. He was so excited!

Pool Time

This summer, Brendan has been a little fish! Last summer he had swimming lessons and it seems that they're starting to pay off. Though he can't swim on his own, without the help of water-wings, he's been brave enough to venture out on his own in the swimming pool (something he would not have tried prior to the lessons). A friend of Aunt Jess has let us come in on her apartment complex pool, so we spent many a super-hot summer day there. On this day, Aunt Jess brought her camera so we have some cool pictures of what he can do.

Swimming alone on the kick board.

Catching some rays with Mommy.

Climbing out of the pool by himself.

Noodle swimming.

Playing pool basketball.

Jumping in by himself!

Brendan's 4th Birthday Party: June 9, 2012

Our little man is 4!!!! Can you believe it?! This year he was really into Super Heroes, and we decided to make a super hero theme for his birthday party. I did a lot of online searching for ideas to come up with this one. We basically pretended that each of the kids were super heroes being tested to become a part of the Super Hero Academy. They started by making their own capes & picking out a mask.

Brendan makes his cape.

The finished product: the Bionic Birthday Boy, Brendan!

They then proceeded to prove how powerful they were at the "Mighty Muscles" station.

Next the super heroes had to prove they had the balance to walk across the "Lava Pit."

The next task was to show their bravery by crawling into the "Bat Cave" and retrieving the kryptonite (light sticks).

At the "Vaporize a Villian" station, the super heroes had to prove that they had what it takes to take down the scariest of villians. This was the favorite activity, by far, thanks to our villian Uncle Shane.

Next the super heroes-in-training were to use their "Magnificent Minds" to guess the amount of candy in some candy jars. The parents got to join in in this one, to guess the larger jar of candy's contents.

In the final test of our super heroes abilities, they had to "Leap Buildings in a Single Bound."

After completing all the training and tasks, each child was asked to choose a super hero name, and were given a graduation certificate from the Super Hero Academy. They all seemed to have so much fun, especially Brendan. As we were at the park, they were able to play on the playground. We enjoyed pizzas and a wonderful cake from Cousin Brandy. So much fun! And Brendan has not stopped talking about super heroes since.

The big 4-year-old makes a wish.

Our helpers in their awesome Super Hero Academy shirts.

For all the pictures of the party scroll to the bottom of the blog. For the inspiration for most of the ideas, check out the following websites: http://designergirl007.typepad.com/designergirl007/2009/02/superhero-birthday-party.html and http://www.ambrosiagirl.com/blog/dax-and-kais-superhero-party/

While Daddy's Away: Mommy and Brendan Will Play! May 17-25, 2012

While Ryan was away on his big Canadian fishing trip, I took the opportunity to get some special time with Brendan. As it won't be too long before he will have a little brother or sister to share my attention with, I thought it would be a good idea to have some one-on-one fun with my first born. With A LOT of help from Aunt Jess*, we had such a great week. We did some fun things around St. Louis. We posted most of our activities on Facebook, but I've included some pics in this blog (again, thanks to Aunt Jess and her camera). We had such a blast! It's a week that I will always remember for some truly special moments with my Sugar Bear.

Day 1 of Daddy's big fishing trip: we had an AWESOME day at the Zoo with Aunt Jess. So much fun!

Aunt Jess and Brendan enjoy one of B's favorite exhibits: the penguins.

A happy boy during our lunch break.

He was so excited that he got to see his favorite animals: penguins, giraffes and zebras. He kept hugging me and saying, "I'm so happy, Mommy." Melt your heart moments.

Brendan loved reading the Zoo map.

All Aboard! (the Zoo train): Brendan, Aunt Jess, and Mommy.

Day 2 of Daddy's big fishing trip: grocery shopping=check, lunch out=check, free evening at the Magic house with Aunt Jess and our friend, Jessica and her whole crew=check, dinner=check, and a very exhausted Mommy=check, check. Packed day 2!

Brendan & Josie have fun with water at the Magic House

Kelly

Leanna

Josie serves us up some pizzas.

Brendan: I don't think that is the purpose of this activity.

All of the kids loved this activity with magnets. Brendan & Josie tried to hang as many metal pieces as they could from the ceiling before they fell. Kelly enjoyed cleaning & organizing the items into trays. And Leanna got a kick out of messing up Leanna's organization.

 
Day 3 of Daddy's big fishing trip: movie marathon. Brendan and I watched Happy Feet 2, Footloose, Alvin and the Chipmunks. I even got a bonus movie after Brendan went to bed: The Vow.


Day 4: church in the morning and caught up on some of our favorite shows on the DVR. And had an intense game of air hockey.


Day 5: picnic lunch at the park and fun on the playground with Aunt Jess. Then dinner at NaNa and BawBaw's (my parents') so I could do laundry: our dryer was on the fritz.

Brendan enjoys a picnic lunch.

Brendan and Aunt Jess play hide-and-seek with some other kids on the playground. Here they're counting before they "go seek."

Brendan loves his Aunt Jess.

Day 6: got Brendan hooked on the XBox and Lego Harry Potter. (Didn't know it at the time, but this marks the emergence of a monster. Playing the XBox might be his favorite thing now.)


Day 7: appointment day. I had a doctor's appointment and found out that Brendan's little brother or sister is doing great--a really strong heartbeat. And so far, Mommy's weight gain is spot-on, as is my blood-pressure. Let's hope that it stays this way. Also, went to see Aunt J'me to get Brendan's (much needed) summer haircut. And we ate dinner together at Applebee's: Brendan's favorite restaurant.


Day 8: Grant's Farm with Aunt Jess (told you she was amazing) and grocery shopping.

Brendan and Mommy feed the goats (not brave enough to go inside the fence).

Brendan on the carousel. (He's the one that chose the creepy-looking bunny).

Mommy holds Brendan up as he waves at the elephants.

Aunt Jess, Brendan, & Mommy.

Brendan loves his first sno-cone.

Day 9: was an extremely hot day: one of the first 100-degree days that this summer would see (and we've seen PLENTY more since then). So we decided to stay indoors and enjoy the air conditioning. We played more Lego Harry Potter. We got our first call from Daddy and he was back in the states. Hadn't talked to him since he left.



And so, that was how our week went without Daddy. I think we kept ourselves busy enough: partly because Mommy had a week and a half off work, partly because it was a great way to kick off our summer together, and mostly so that we were too exhausted to miss Ryan too much while he was gone. But as I said before, years down the road I will think back fondly on this time that Brendan and I got to spend together: and I'm sure I'll wish that we could do it all over again.

(To hear Ryan's version of what happened that week, see the next blog entry)










*A special thanks to Aunt Jess for helping out so much this week. It truly would NOT have been possible to do all these things without you! And thank you for always having your camera with you. You have such a gift for capturing the special moments that I want to remember forever on film. You are a blessing to our lives, and we are so thankful that we have you to call our sister & aunt. Love you!!!

The Great White North (by Ryan Pelhank)

Hi Guys,

I was fortunate enough this year to go on the trip of a lifetime to White River, Ontario (Canada), the home of Lake Kabinakagami (yep, look it up) for an amazing fishing trip.  It was me, Uncle Keith (Pelhank), Cousin Scott (Pelhank), Cousin (in-law) Jordan Fleig, Jordan's dad Keith (Fleig), Jordan's brother Josh, and a couple of their friends.  After flying to Detroit, we made the ten hour drive north and took a bush-plane another 30 minutes to the lake.

I have never seen or caught so many fish on a trip.  My worst day, I probably caught 30 Walleye.  Northern Pike were everywhere, but it was tough to get a 40-incher (considered a trophy).  This was almost too cool for words.  Check out the cabins we stayed in and some pictures of Jordan from previous trips in their photo albums at http://www.kabykabins.ca/.  We were there from 5/17 - 5/25, so it was a pretty long and fulfilling trip.  Lots of wildlife, and you can check out all the pictures on my FB page at http://www.facebook.com/ryan.pelhank.  Thanks for reading!!

My biggest Walleye.  About 22 inches.

Dee Plane, dee plane!!

We called these guys 'The Billies'.  Whaddya know, some hillbillies from North Carolina with mandolins and fiddles were at the camp too!!  Ryan and Jordan were in heaven!!

My biggest pike.  About 27 inches.  Jordan's dad caught a 39 incher the first day, so we thought we were going to catch monsters all week......not exactly.

Uncle Keith's monster on the last night of fishing.  I think it was 37 inches.  Those things are like torpedoes with teeth!!  I still have the scar on my hand to prove it.  Little known fact: Northern Pike STINK!! (...like, actually smelly).

We're Expecting!

On April 18, we announced that our family of three will soon become four: we're expecting. We are so excited! Brendan already knows, and is pretty nonchalant about it. We are due on November 24, two days after Thanksgiving. What a wonderful thing to be thankful for! Here we go again.

Our 2nd child's 1st photo.