San Francisco

So we left for Edmonton last Wednesday night so we would have the day together with Lynsey on Thursday at Brian's parents' place. Our flight was leaving at 7:20pm so we had to leave for the airport around 5:30. We had been talking throughout the day about leaving Lynsey and that we were going away, but we didn't think Lynsey was catching on to anything that we were saying. However, by the end of the day we were getting a lot of hugs and kisses, and when we left, she just said "ba-bye" and watched us leave out the window. I may be giving her too much credit, but it almost seemed like she was somewhat ready for us to go! Our flight was smooth and we got to our hotel close to 10 that night. Our first night wasn't the best - we had requested a "room with a view", but we really weren't thinking. All that means is that you have a window on a busy street and you hear sirens and racing cars all night! The next morning, I went to talk to the front desk and they gave us a different room - a MUCH quieter one. Sooo much better! They were very nice over at the The Palace - I would definitely stay there again should we ever make our way back to San Francisco.

Our first day was really good. We took our time heading out in the morning, and took a cable car imitator up to Fisherman's Wharf (cable cars were apparently a bit of a wait that time of day, and we just wanted to get up there). We just walked around, checked out the sea lions, had lunch and made our way over to the pier where we could catch our ferry to Alcatraz. Alcatraz was a really neat place - they had a really good audio tour that you could listen to when you were going through the cell block that told you a lot of about the history and some of the notorious criminals and escape attempts etc. When we got back, we had dinner on the Wharf and made our way over the stand in line to take a cable car back (we had to take at least one cable car ride to say we'd done it!). All in all, a good day.

Saturday was a good day, also. We took a bus down to Golden Gate Park, and our plan was just to walk around the park and see the sights, but not really do go into any of the attractions. Well, there was this California Academy of Sciences that sounded somewhat interesting, so we were enticed into checking it out. It was pretty interesting, actually (more for Brian than for me, but I enjoyed it, too:)). We took a bus up to Golden Gate Bridge and took a few pictures, and then bussed it back downtown to our hotel. The hotel concierge recommended this local seafood place for dinner so we checked it out - AMAZING food! Soo good! The ambiance wasn't the greatest - the tables were packed in pretty tight - but the food was so good that I forgave that:). We never really did anything in the evening, except sit in the hottub at our hotel - we just weren't big into checking out nightlife.

Sunday was sort of a wrap-up day. We stuck around downtown and did some shopping. Well, Brian did some shopping, but I didn't find anything that I wanted that wasn't a million dollars. Definitely a higher class of shopping than I was used to! It was a little discouraging, because I wanted to treat myself to something nice on my 30th birthday, but I just couldn't justify paying the inflated prices. I decided to just buy myself something when I got home. We had another delicious dinner close to our hotel, and packed it in for the night. Our flight left early Monday morning, and we go to see Lynsey around noon at the airport - I had missed her so much! She did so great while we were gone - she had asked about us a few times, but the explanation that we were "ba-bye" seemed to satisfy her and she went on with her day. She loved her adventures outside and the jacuzzi tub for her baths - I think she had her own little vacation:). She was happy to see us, though, so that was good. She seems to be settling back into life here at home without a hitch, so it just proves to me once again what an adaptable little girl she is. I am so thankful for that!

All in all, a great trip, and I'm so glad we did it. I wouldn't have wanted to be gone much longer than we were - I think three full days was just the right amount of time. It's good to be home again! The rest of July is busy, still, but at least we won't have to leave our little sweetie again:).

Time for a vacation

The last few weeks have been busy but good. Last Saturday, we had Ian and Ezra for the day while Mary and Dave went to a wedding. It was a pretty good day, actually - not as stressful as I thought it might be. This weekend past was really busy - we had a wedding on Friday, and Ryan and Ruthy came into town and stayed with us. It was a really good time! Lynsey and Elijah played pretty well together for the most part, although there were definitely some tense moments when it came to toy sharing.

Lynsey has been increasing her vocabulary at an incredible pace! She is jabbering away now, although a lot of words she says we still don't understand. Communication is getting easier all the time, and she is definitely learning to manage her emotions. Our days are pretty routine - have breakfast, shower, play a bit, get dressed, and go outside until lunchtime. We spend a lot of time at various parks, and Lynsey is getting really good at climbing on everything - she even slides down most slides now with no help from me:). I sometimes feel like I need a change, but I think Lynsey is perfectly happy with the way things are going. There are days when I feel desparate to join some kind of play group or gymboree or something, and then there are days when I'm so thankful that we have such a free and clear schedule to just do what we want every day. I think once the summer is over, I will join something - the thought of being inside all day every day with her is a bit daunting! Just the last few days have been a bit rainy and the temptation to just let her watch "Cars" all day suddenly overwhelms me! Not good! Luckily for me, she isn't a couch potato by nature and even though she asks for movies, she usually only pays attention to them for about 5 minutes and then ends up playing with her toys instead of watching anyway.

The pregnancy is going well - I had my first midwife appointment last Thursday and it went really well! I'm feeling really good about my decision to go with a midwife. The first thing I noticed when I walked into the office was the comfy bed instead of those wonderful cot-type thingies in the doctors offices, and I decided at that point already I had made a good decision:). We heard the heartbeat, which just as it did last time, made it seem real for me that there was a baby in there! I like the way the midwife presents me with options and doesn't pressure - she hasn't even tried to talk me into a home birth and I'm already thinking it sounds really good! I never would have thought I would be the kind of person to consider something that seems so hippy-dippy and naturalist, but it just sounds so good to me! Imagine being in the comfort of your own home . . . there are pros and cons, which is why I am not totally sold on it. The good thing is that I don't have to make a decision about this for a long time yet, so I can do my research and see how the pregnancy is going. People in our culture have misconceptions about giving birth at home (including me!) so I want to look into it more.

We are leaving for San Francisco on Thursday night! I can't wait, although I'm definitely nervous about leaving Lynsey. We will be going to Edmonton on Wednesday night already to give Lynsey the day on Thursday to get used to being at her Grandma and Grandpa's with us for a bit before we just leave her there for three whole days. I know it's time to do this, but I know I'll miss her like crazy! I am looking forward to some sleeping in, eating out, and just general r & r.

Life is about to get just a little bit crazier

Yes, it's true - Brian and I decided that taking care of Lynsey alone was not enough of a challenge for us:). We are adding to our little family come January 8 of next year! I will be 12 weeks pregnant on Friday. I felt pretty much the same as I did with my first pregnancy, 6-9 weeks being a bit yucky but never all out sickening. I sure am glad to have some energy back now, though - I was tired of being tired all the time. I am going with a midwife for this pregnancy and I'm really excited about it! I am not necessarily a big believer in the whole naturalist give birth at home sort of philosophy, but I love the idea of being taken care of from beginning to end by the same two or three women, and that they will fight for me at the hospital - I would hate to have a c-section just because the doctor is too busy to try everything else possible to have a natural birth. I have my first appointment on July 2nd, so I will know more then. In the meantime, everything seems to be similar to my first pregnancy as mentioned before - not showing yet, which is a shame really because my summer maternity clothes are much nicer than my regular summer clothes:).

Lynsey has been busy learning! She now tells when she's pooped (most of the time) - she grabs the front of her diaper and says "poo":). Sometimes I check and she hasn't actually done it, which makes me think she might be saying it when she pees as well - I'm not sure how much she actually comprehends yet. She likes sitting on the potty, but we are no where near training yet. I just count this as a first step to her being aware of what she's doing and it's great that she's interested in it - when she's sitting on the potty, she has to get up every 5 seconds or so to check if there's anything in there:). Her tantrums have definitely subsided, although we're not out of the woods yet by any means. I think she's just getting older and able to deal with her disappointment a bit better. I am also learning more about her and how to avoid getting into these predicaments in the first place. We bought her a tricycle that I can push and steer and she really likes it! The stroller just isn't cutting it anymore, so now I just put on her little helmet and off we go on the tricycle! When we're standing still she tries to pedal a bit, but when I'm pushing her she doesn't try - it'll take some time to get to that.

She is becoming more and more chatty, too - when she's talking to Brian on the phone, there's all kinds of gibberish coming from her mouth:). Brian claims she attempted to put a sentence together the other day, although I wasn't there to witness it - apparently, she put together the words "dad go work" and then when Brian confirmed that yes, he was going to work, she frowned. I love the new words she's discovering all the time! There's still a communication barrier, but I feel like it's slowly getting better as she learns more words. She can tell us now whether she wants juice or milk, or even some different kinds of snack that she might want. I have high hopes that by the time the baby comes, she will be completely self-sufficient:).

Still fighting for that independence!

We've had a pretty routine few weeks. I've posted a few pictures of a dinner I had with some of my friends a few weekends ago. It was a much needed night out! Brian went on a fishing trip with all the guys in my family last weekend (no pictures yet - not sure if he will do a post when he gets some or not) so it was just Lynsey and me for a few days. We went to Three Hills on Friday and hung out with Liz, Gert, Mary and kids. It was Mary's birthday so we went out for supper while Dylana babysat (thanks Dylana!) and then had cake. It was a really good time!

Lynsey has started trying to dress herself. I know this is a natural part of growing up, but kind of like when she started wanting to feed herself, I'm not really that excited about it. She just gets so mad when she can't get her pants on - she almost always gets both legs in one opening and after a while, this really gets to her (and consequently, to me). She is getting better and like with the feeding, I will just have to be patient while she figures this out. The tantrums come and go - she had a few this weekend that I just couldn't explain. She would hand me the remote and say "baby". Thinking this meant she wanted to watch Baby Einstein, I would turn it on for her and she just got so angry and said "baby" over and over again until she was in an all-out freak out. This happened a few times. I can't tell you how happy I will be when she can tell me more. This is an incredibly frustrating phase that she's in - she knows what she wants, but she just can't tell me properly. Kind of like when she's in her high chair saying "more" - well, "more of what, Lynsey?", and all I get is a frustrated crying and pointing to nowhere "more more more". It's been a bit tough, but I know this will just keep getting better as her vocabulary expands. She's a smart little girl - she'll figure out how to get what she wants sooner rather than later, me thinks:).

On a brighter note, isn't she a cutie??:) I love her so much, and while some days are really hard, I have so many moments where I just love her to pieces and am so incredibly thankful for her (I'm sure all you moms out there know exactly what I'm talking about:)).