Singing at Church

Today as a part of our worship service, the children sang one of their songs, "Where do I go?"  I was so proud of Aiden because he stood up there with all the kids and did the motions in front of the whole church.  We had a short rehearsal before church where Mr. Brett explained what they were doing and during the song Ms. Brittany (one of Aiden's favorite teachers) helped the kids with the motions.  Aiden didn't really sing; I don't think he's coordinated enough to sing and do motions at the same time. :-)  It was so cute to watch them and I was so proud of my little boy! 

Seeing Mark

Today I had an impromptu ultrasound.  I was excited because I was very curious to see how big Mark is.  We are three weeks away from my due date and this whole pregnancy I have been measuring small.  I got my hopes up thinking that this would be a small baby.  The ultrasound revealed today that Mark is around 7 and 1/2 lbs already!  He is above average and will probably be like his brothers and be big at delivery as well.  He was very active and we saw lots of movement.  He is definitily a boy and at one point he had his hand on his head like he wasn't thrilled about taking pictures.  We saw his foot and it measured almost 3 inches!  We can't wait to meet this baby boy!

Celebrating Dadda

We celebrated Jeff's 32nd birthday today!  We met Nannie and enjoyed dinner at a Japaneese Steak House.  The boys liked watching the chef cook in front of us.  Aiden was nervous about the fire, but very interested in the cooking.  They ate lots of rice and we all left very full.  It was a great way to celebrate Jeff!

Shower for Mark

The girls at the spa threw me an amazing baby shower today for baby Mark.  In spite of me telling Kiva not to, she went to a lot of time and effort and prepared a "Martha Stewart" style mother of all baby showers.  The food was wonderful- we had a spread of finger foods and lots of yummy desserts including an adorable jungle themed cake.  We had so much fun playing baby games; guessing baby animals and celebrity's baby names.  The guys came later to join in on the fun.  We filled out a short survey where we listed our hopes and dreams for Mark.  After reading them aloud, all the girls got emotional thinking about this little boy and what he would grow up to be.  It was great to celebrate his life even before he has arrived.  Everyone brought diapers and also gave us cash.  I was overwhelmed by every one's generosity.  We have diapers for months!

Myrtle Beach

We spent all last week in Myrtle Beach with the entire Baxter family!  It was a great trip where we all relaxed and enjoyed fun in the sun.  Unfortunately the first day we were there, I got the stomach bug that Jeff and Aiden had the week before.  I stayed in bed all day and thankfully no body else got it.  The weather was great while we were there, with the exception of a rainy and windy Tuesday.  We took the kids to the Children's Museum of South Carolina where there were hundreds of buttons and lights.  They both loved all the hands on activities; their favorite was the kitchen where they "cooked" Jeff and I lots of different foods for a half hour.  The most exciting part of every day for the boys was riding the elevator.  They both took turns pressing the buttons and were so excited to ride on it.  Anytime we said we were going somewhere, they would ask if we were going to ride on the elevator.  After we put the kids to bed each night, we enjoyed our adult time where we played poker and reminisced on all the pets the Baxter's had.  The conversations led to laughter and some unusual impressions of the animals (Collin).  I'm always amused when Jeff and his brothers talk about their childhood.  Aiden and Ty loved the beach, where Jeff built them enormous holes and mountains to play in; they could have stayed out there all day, but Ty and I took naps each day.  The guys played golf and all played poorly, but had a good time nonetheless.  The girls went shopping, but dropped quickly from being in the sun all day.  We all enjoyed a dinner out at local restaurant and had some yummy seafood.  It was a nice break from reality and we are glad nobody (Sarah nor I) went into labor. :-)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grandparent's Day

Aiden's school hosted grandparent's day today.  His grandparents were invited to come and have snack time with him.  He had been looking forward to it all week.  He told me they had grapes and donuts to eat.  Here he is with Gram, Chief, Papa and Nannie.

 

First Field Trip

Aiden's class went on their first field trip to Dauset Trails in Jackson GA today!  We all had been looking forward to it for a while.  Ty and I went with Aiden and his class to join in on the fun.  Aiden was quiet all morning, but I thought he was just nervous about the field trip.  We met everyone there and walked around to see all the different animals.  We saw a cougar, monkeys, birds, snakes and frogs, and a buffalo.  The exciting part was feeding the turtles in the water.  They had food and at least a dozen turtles swam up to eat the food all the kids were throwing off the bridge. 
About half way through walking on the trail, Aiden tells me his tummy hurts and a few minutes later gets sick.  Ms. Tracy was right there with wipes and hand sanitizer to clean him up.  We cut the field trip short to head home, since Aiden wasn't feeling well.  He ended up with a stomach bug (but he got over it very quickly).  I was glad that we got to go, but felt bad that Aiden wasn't his normal self.

This was our attempt at a group/class picture.  Aiden did not want to join in.

Ty had a great time and jumped in for a solo picture.

Aquarium

Nannie treated us to a day at the aqarium today!  We all really enjoyed seeing all the fish and other animals there.  The boys were able to pet sting rays, see turtles, sea ottors, sharks, jelly fish, sea horses, and many different kinds of fish.  They liked the groupers because of one of their favorite TV shows and the character "Mr. Grouper".  We also found a "Nemo" fish.  They liked climbing in the tunnels and playing on the indoor playground.  There was a boat on the playground that had buttons that actually made noises (a horn and a starter).  Of course the boys loved that.  Aiden was very interested in the interactive touch screens that told about the animals.  I think the highlight for everybody was the theatrical dolphin show.  We were all very impressed with their tricks and how the trainers interacted with them.

We went to "Thumbs Up" diner afterwards for lunch and the food was so yummy.  Mom and the boys were all very tired when we got back home.  We had a fun day.

 

 

 

 

School Pics

Aiden's school pictures

 I think his face is representative of his preschool experience, he looks scared and nervous.  It's not his natural smile, but I guess that's what to expect from school pictures.  ha ha!

Gulf Shores

For Labor Day weekend, we took a trip to Gulf Shores to visit my grandparents.  They were so excited to have us visit and the boys were happy to see them!  We spent a couple of days at the beach where Papa and the boys fed the seaguls.  They hoovered around us for a while and one actually took a piece of cheese out of my hand.  Then Aiden would run and chase them away.  Ty and Jeff took turns burring each other's feet in the sand.  Ty liked lifting his legs up after they were burried.  The waves were big due to the hurricane that just came through, but the boys loved splashing in the ocean.  They sat at the water's edge and got knocked over by the waves and both laughed as they fell backwards.  Jeff and Papa played golf one afternoon while the boys rode their bikes in the cul de sac at the house.  All weekend, Papa performed magic tricks where he turned many various things into candy.  The boys were so amazed and loved all his tricks.