Some time outside

I've said it a thousand times, but Luca is such an outside kid. He wants to go out with me when I take Jude out first thing in the morning, and would stay outside all day if I let him. Raining, cold, wind, doesn't matter. He's like the postal service. Nothing can keep him from his time outside. He just says "It's raining out there" and then continues playing like he is not also "out there."

We have two bird feeders in the front yard and he loves to fill them up and then watch for the birdies to come. And come they do. Not a lot of variety, but there sure are a lot. Which is all that matters when you're two. We did have an unusual one the other day.

Josh looked up what it was because he happened to see one while he was working a couple days later, but I forgot what it's called. Very pretty, anyway! And eating Luca's birdseed, which is the important part.

He also enjoys (with nothing but love in his heart, I'm sure) to chase the birdies. He sees one in the yard or on the fence, turns to me and asks "I chase birdie?" and then off he goes. Again, it doesn't matter if it's raining, he's in sock feet and the grass is wet, or that he bird is already half gone by the time he starts. He just loves it.

I got a couple of hanging flower pots for Mother's Day, and Luca helped Josh hang them. (Who knew it was so hard!) They did have to put in the shephard's hooks as well as put the flowers onto them, so I guess it was a little more complicated.

We also bought a hanging strawberry plant a little while ago. Luca had been helping me water that one, so now he helps to water the flowers too. And the mulch. And the siding. And the grass, always the grass. Still, I love having my little helper. =)

It's a....

Last I counted it up, the people who have given a guess total 9 girl votes and 6 boy votes. Close race!

My grandma had me do one last test to figure out the gender. Mom thread a needle, poked it in the eraser of a pencil, and then held it over my wrist. Grandma said that it would tell how many kids as well as the gender. So the first time it swung it would be for Luca. Then it would stop swinging before starting back up again. If it swung the same way as the first time, it meant another boy, if it changed direction it meant girl. Then it would stop again. If it stayed still that meant we'd have two kids. If it started swinging again it would tell the gender of the child after this one, and on and on until it stopped. Luca was awfully interested so it took a couple tries to get a "reading" without influence. But the first time it swung across my wrist, then it stopped, then swung up and down my arm (change in direction), then it stopped, then it went back to swinging across my wrist, then it was done. So, Grandma's test said that this one will be a girl and there will be another boy later down the road.

She says that she has done this test on a whole bunch of women, and it is almost always right. Mom remembers her doing it for her and being right about the number of kids. But the question is, was it right for me?

Luca's getting a little Sister! We are so excited and not a little bit in disbelief. I still half expect to be in the L&D room and hear "It's a boy!" It seems like it would be not so hard for an ultrasound tech to mistake a boy for a girl. You know, from the right angle. And if all goes well I won't be having another ultrasound. So... we are planning on a girl and hoping she was right! =)

Also, notice my super awesome shirt? I totally made it. It's my countdown shirt. We tried to take week pictures when I was pregnant with Luca, and at first we were good about taking them with a sign about what week it was. Then we were glad just to remember to take the pictures. So this is sort of two birds with one stone. As long as we remember to take the pic, we'll have record of the week. Here's 21 weeks, past the half way point!

The zoo

Mom saw an ad for a zoo that is about 30-40 minutes from my house and free. They advertise as not having any exotic animals, but having more than just farm animals. Since I love free ways to spend an afternoon, we decided to go check it out. It's a little far for how much time we can spend there to make it a regular outing, but if we lived closer we would probably go weekly--for being free it was really nice!

They had peacocks and otters and a couple eagles, some elk and a bunch of turtles and snakes and a couple alligators. The map said they also had wolves and llamas, but that part of the zoo was roped off. I didn't realize but we happened to go the week they opened. One of the snakes had two bowls in his cage, one with just water, and one with water and little fish. This of course was noticed by Luca. Ahh, the circle of life.

The otters were so much fun to watch!

We kept walking back and forth to see the animals that Luca requested. At the back of the zoo they had a Huge play area, I think 4 different areas. Some were swing/climbing for bigger kids, some for little ones, one was like a giant sand box and there was a pirate ship to climb up and look around. We spent as much time there as we did looking at the animals.

I imagine we'll go back at least a couple times over the summer, maybe even bring lunch and have a picnic in the pavilions!

Could it be?

Is Spring finally here?? You know, I read in the Trib that 75% of the days in April have been below the normal temperatures, some as much as 15* below average. So we kept chugging through our Winter reading list, waiting for the weather to improve.

I swear I didn't pose him!

Finally, FINALLY, the weather is nice! So many activities we've been holding off on, waiting for weather that doesn't make me cry. Luca (and Bunna) got to go on the maiden voyage of the bike trailer.  He loved it and would have kept going all night. He kept saying "Mommy go fast!" The next morning I (painfully) came to understand exactly how long it's been since I rode a bike...

The face is because we were not currently going fast, honest.

We put together his sand/water table birthday present. Luca sure loves to use his tools, and helping Dayuh use power tools is even better!

He went down for his nap two hours late and screaming "Luca water! Luca out!" the whole time. Needless to say, he was not eager to leave his new toy...

I just hope the weather continues. There was snow in the forecast later this week, but they must have heard my threats because it's been changed to rain. Really, I'm not in the mood for more rain either, but anything beats snow and cold!

Beau or Bow?

The time has almost come for us to know, is Baby 2 a boy or girl? We'll be finding out soon, but I thought it would be fun to make everybody guess first. I'm thinking boy, Josh and Luca are thinking girl. Luca has been planning on a sister since we first told him about the baby in mommy's tummy. If I'm right we'll be spending the rest of the time trying to convince Luca that brother's are good too.
Anyway, to help with your guessing, I thought I'd answer some Old Wives Tales to predict gender.
  
Hair and complexion: The saying is that "Boys give beauty, girls take it away." Josh thinks that my hair is fuller and shinier than before, and (knock on wood) not even one little breakout on my skin. That says boy.
Sleeping Position: This suggests that if you're sleeping on your right side it's a girl, left side it's a boy. I kind of think this is a crazy one though. As far as positioning of my organs and the baby, it's medically proven to be easier on both of us if I sleep on my left. Since I know that, I try to. But more than that, what pregnant person sleeps on one side for more than an hour max? Unsure.
Moodiness: Frequent mood swings imply girl, stable and as before mood suggests boy. Josh reluctantly told me that he thinks I'm moodier than normal (really had to twist his arm to get an answer on that one, guess it goes to show how moody he really thinks I am). That would mean girl.
Skin: Dry skin implies a boy, soft skin means girl. My skin is so dry I am itching holes in it. Very much boy on this one.
Dad's Weight: If the dad-to-be gains weight along with Momma, it's a boy, if he stays the same, it's a girl. Since we don't own a scale it's hard to say for sure, but Josh says his clothes fit the same, so probably he hasn't gained weight. Suggesting girl.
Morning Sickness: More morning sickness means girl, where none or very little means boy. I generally felt fine until I ate something, then it didn't matter what I ate or how much, I was nauseated. Until about 13 weeks along. So.... Unsure?
Headaches: More headaches means boy, no more than normal is for girl. Perhaps I'm a little skewed because just a couple days ago I had a headache for a full 24 hours (still had it waking up in the middle of the night. It was annoying.) But it seems to me I'm having more headaches. So boy.
Cravings: Salty and Spicy foods indicate a boy, sweeter foods suggest a girl. If I really want something once and then I'm good, I don't count that as a craving. So the only things that I've wanted daily for a week or more is cucumbers and carrots with ranch dip, and pizza rolls. Not pizza, cheap-o throw-back-to-college-days pizza rolls. Not really sweet, but not spicy either. Unsure.
Fetal Heart Rate: If it's over 140 it's a girl, if it's under 140 it's a boy. I forgot to ask at my 16 week appointment because the doc was running an hour late and I just wanted to get going already. So at my 12 week appointment (when baby was the size of a lime) the heart rate was 158--girl.
Carrying high or low: I really have no idea and couldn't even guess if I'm carrying high or low at this point. Unsure.
Chinese Gender Prediction Chart: It takes the age of mom at conception and month of conception to figure it out. It says this one will be a girl.
Hairline: My personal favorite, if the hairline at the nape of the neck of your first kid is straight, your next kid will be the same gender. If it's pointed, the next will be the opposite gender. Luca has a straight neck-hairline. So, the next kid will be a boy.

That puts the final tally at 4 boy, 4 girl and 4 unsure. Ha, so much for helping! Still, play along and leave your guess in the comments: should we be pulling out the hand-me-downs or is it shopping spree time? We'll reveal in a week or so!

Neighborhood Egg Hunt

After we had such Spring-like weather the cold snap was not appreciated. Even worse, the subdivision egg hunt was scheduled for the same day as the first snow since winter. But, we put on extra layers, were grateful that I hadn't packed away the winter coats and hats yet, grabbed a basket and went down to the park to see what it was all about.

They had a police car there that they were using the loudspeaker from to direct everyone. And the Easter Bunny himself came! I figured he would get the same (if not a worse reaction) as Santa, but Luca said hi and was willing to be brought close enough for a picture. He even gave him a high five!

The field was divided into three areas, one for the little guys, one for medium aged and one for big kids. The area for Luca was so egg heavy that you couldn't hardly walk without shuffling some eggs to the side to avoid stepping on them. It was so cold but Luca couldn't pick up the eggs with his mittens on so he took one off.

He got about a dozen in his basket and said all done. So we dumped his basket in a rubbermaid from the organizers and traded them for a couple goodie bags. With a silly straw! And suckers! Since he said he was all done, we went to get the wagon to go back home, but in addition to the cop car there was an "Emergency Team" vehicle (I guess something like a SWAT team car). They had propped the front doors and back open and were letting kids climb in and check the whole thing out.

Luca climbed up the passenger seat, said Cheese a couple times, wanted down. Walked around the outside and wanted back up in the passenger seat again. A couple more laps, a couple more "cheese"s and we were finally ready to go home.

From the time we left to the time we walked back in the door 25 minutes had passed. But he had fun! And when we warmed up a little he got to have a sucker. He's funny, I explained he was meant to lick it, so he sticks his tongue way out and runs the sucker down it. What a character!

Spring is coming!

Little boy has been itching to go outside every day for ages, and poor guy his Momma hates the cold. But, with new bubble toys from his birthday that needed to be broken in and a temperature upwards of 50, it was finally time. And man was he excited!

Between the bubble gun, spill proof bubbles with a wand and the bubble mower he was busy for a long time. And I mostly played dachshund and moved to wherever the sunny spot was.

He had a blast running all over the yard even if he was all out of bubble juice. There is no doubt he is an outside kid!

Only way I managed to get him to come inside was telling him it was time to eat, and even then he wasn't sure he really was that hungry...