Visit with Grandpa

Over the weekend Grandpa came to visit and Alex had a great time showing him all his toys and new tricks. We had a lovely dinner in Naperville and then enjoyed the nice weather by walking around the Riverwalk up there. Brad and his dad installed a ceiling fan in what will be the baby's nursery and some new blinds in Alex's room too :) Brad enjoyed his much-deserved 4-day weekend!

Night Out at the Park

Thursday night we tossed Alex's bike in the car and headed to Settler's Park in downtown Plainfield for what I thought was going to be a concert in the park. Turns out they are not EVERY Thursday night, just select Thursday nights. Anyway, we enjoyed the unseasonably cooler temperatures and Alex rode his bike around the lake and played on the playground. It is truly one of the prettiest parks around so I took a few extra photos while we were out.

Here's me at 15 weeks and a few days pregnant. I had a doctor appointment this past week and all is going well thus far. August 19 I have an ultrasound at my next doctor appointment so we'll be able to look at the baby and make sure everything is developing OK. We will not find out the sex of the baby until January :)

For those of you following the potty training, it is going very well. Alex is in underpants most of the day until bedtime. Yesterday was the first day he actually told us himself, without being prompted, that he needed to go potty :) Even last night as soon as his toes hit the tub water, he knew and jumped out of the tub to use the potty!! We are getting more and more confident that he'll be fully trained by the time preschool rolls around in September and are already enjoying the thought of not purchasing diapers until January!

I Can Do It!

Along with potty training comes getting dressed by himself. Alex has the responsibility of putting his underpants on and taking them off. He also has learned how to put on his shorts himself and pull them down. Today we are practicing putting shirts on, which is a little bit harder :) These are all good life skills that will be good for him to know in preschool anyway. What a big boy!

Hop Aboard the Potty Train, Choo Choo!

Here are some photos of Alex and Baby "Caillou" (like the show on PBS), his new baby doll who a) is male, although not anatomically correct and b) can use the potty. At the suggestion of neighbors we tried out the potty doll today. Alex and I fed the baby a bottle of water and low and behold, the water dripped right out into the potty. We threw a big party for the baby and congratulated him with a treat and lots of praise. Alex wanted to watch it again so the whole scene repeated itself. We put Alex in big boy underpants and let the fun begin!

While he has had accidents, he has also had success on the potty and is very proud of himself. Alex has the responsibility of cleaning up any messes he makes (with some help of course) and I'm sure he'll realize that it isn't that much fun to scrub the carpets and chairs each time he doesn't make it to the potty. He's still learning what it feels like when he has to go so we aren't exactly getting to the bathroom fast enough, but he'll get there. When he tries to go or successfully goes, he gets a Smartie treat and is allowed to put a sticker on his potty train sticker chart. I'll be sure to keep you updated on our progress.

Mom, Please Don't Forget...

Tonight I was leaving to go to WalMart and Alex said "Hey Mom, please don't forget to get apple juice and little oranges." Good thing I have him around to help me with my grocery list!

Halloween Sneak Peak

As it stands right now, I think "costuming" for Halloween will be a little more enjoyable for little Alex this year. We all recall last year when he refused to wear his tiger costume and I had to wrestle him into it, tears and all...? Well, I asked him what he wants to be this year and he said Tigger, as in the Tigger he bought in Disney World. Anyways, I thought maybe that tiger costume from last year would fit so he ultra-willingly tried it on but it is quite tight (when did he get so big??).

Last night I was at Once Upon a Child (which they have moved to a new location and is HUGE now) perusing the maternity clothes, when I saw the Halloween costumes already on display. There was Tigger, right there in the 4T section, just perfect for Alex, (and any costume for $6.50 is an awesome deal)! It is the one they sell at the Disney store for major bucks and looks like a few little munchkins have taken their turn with it, but is still distinctly Tigger! When I brought it home Alex was thrilled. He put it on right away and bounced all over the place in it. We finally took it off of him as he was sweating profusely given the 90 degree temps here this week.

Anyway, we are glad he's more into wearing his costume this season than last year. What a difference a year makes!

Landscaping 101

This past weekend Brad started on a little landscaping project. The prior owners had already prepared a small flower bed out front, but we just wanted to spiff it up a little bit. He spent all day Sunday laying these retaining wall stones and did a great job! We have awesome neighbors who are always willing to lend their expertise (and tools) and for that we are most grateful! Now we just need to get some fill dirt and mulch, and a new bush for the corner and we'll be all set out there.

I have posted the "before" shots above and "after" shots below :) Alex was more than willing to help dig in the dirt, as long as he could bring his juice cup along!

Red Light, Green Light

Alex is very much into making sure we follow the rules of the road lately. He knows green means go and red means stop. He's a little unsure why sometimes yellow (orange as he calls it) means stop and sometimes means go and it really throws him for a loop if we make a right turn on red. It's not just one or two lights on our daily errand runs either--it is every traffic light along the way :)

The Big Brother

We are excited to announce that we are expecting a new addition to the Ross family in January 2009 and couldn't be happier! Alex is excited to be a big brother and we'll all be eager to find out if this is a boy or a girl...in January :) I'm about 13 weeks and seem to be getting over the hump of all day sickness and fatigue and am feeling very good overall. We'll keep you all posted as our family continues to grow!

Fourth of July Weekend

We had a lovely July 4th weekend with my mom and Grandma in from Cincinnati. There seemed to be fireworks each night around the neighborhood, with July 4th being the most boisterous of them all! I really don't remember the "local" fireworks being so loud in either Texas or Ohio, but here in Illinois they are EVERYWHERE and you can just sit on your front lawn and see an amazing show all around.

Saturday we rode downtown to Navy Pier where we had lunch and took a scenic boat ride on Lake Michigan. It was a beautiful day and while Alex was a bit unsure of the boat at first, a few snacks helped him enjoy the ride. He also rode the carousel (which even he thought was a little bit bogus given that there was no music or bell to let you know when it was starting/stopping) and kiddie train.


Of course there was plenty of frolicking in the wading pool with the neighbor kids. Here were Alex and Josh cooling off at the end of a warm day.