The beginning of June is always busy with our anniversary and Father's Day so close together. This year we decided to celebrate the two together, so for this 3rd wedding anniversary of ours, I surprised Jeremy with dinner at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse in downtown Minneapolis. I can honestly say, this is a place well worth it's money! It still comes in second to our absolute favorite place, the place that captures our heart - Fogo de Chao...BUT it did compete quite well as it has superb steak and an atmosphere and style all it's own. Our visit to Manny's on my birthday two years ago was not as impressive. Don't get me wrong, Manny's is top-notch, however these other two restaurants impressed me more. As you can see, we love to try out all the top steak joints in the city! Here is a pic of us that the cute little couple sitting next to us took for us. They were celebrating their anniversary as well :)
Next up for summer was Landon's first swimming lessons. Now keep in mind, Landon absolutely loves bath time. When we say "bath" and "bubbles" he gets so excited, he runs up the stairs and wants to climb in before I can get his clothes off. Then he wants to pour the bubble bath into the soap cup to make bubbles. He splashes around like a little fish and throws his toys around! Well, that's of course, because the bath water is nice and warm. You bring him to a kids splash pad, a cold pool, or a lake and he doesn't want to go near it. So we decided to put him in swimming lessons to try to get him to enjoy the water and learn that it's okay even when it's cold. You get used to it! The first lesson was misery for Landon, he was so mad that the pool was so cold! But by the second or third lesson, he was enjoying himself. We did eight lessons and he now looks forward to swimming any chance he gets. Now.... we are still working on the spash pads and lakes! Maybe next summer because we know Daddy and Grandpa Brad will want him to get out of the boat enjoy the lake with them! :)
Our good friends the Schmitz's have three kiddies, one being around Landon's age. Little Juliana turned 2 this summer and for her party, Matt and Chelsey planned an outdoor party at Bunker Stables where the kiddies rode ponies and had fun eating pizza and cake! This was Landon's first time riding a pony. He had a blast!
The 4th of July was a fun time! The Saturday prior to the 4th, we enjoyed an day at Rush Lake. Our friends the Schmitz's also have a cabin on the lake that they invite their friends to every year. We took them up on the offer to spend our 4th consecutive year of fun in the sun there over the holiday. We got some good pics of the whole group and all the kiddos who are all growing up so fast. We ate a potluck, took a few boat rides, swam in the lake, soaked up the sun, and ate some more!
On the actual 4th, we made plans with our friends, the Bakers. We invited them over for a barbeque, only to find out that our grill was not working! After a good laugh, the guys went out and bought a small one to hold us over until we could either fix ours or take the time to decide on a nice new one. Finally, we grilled and ate salad and dessert and then headed out for some fireworks. Jeremy had purchased some small "kid-friendly" sparklers and those snap pop things that the kids enjoyed while watching a few of our neighbors light off all of theirs. At dusk, we drove down to watch the Elk River fireworks display on a very mosquito-y night. We always have a blast with the Bakers and their 3 darling kiddies!
The end of July proved to be one of the best weeks of the summer. We got to meet our new nephew Elijah Lucas Gohman! He was born on July 25th, was 7 lbs - 14 oz and 19 inches. A perfectly healthy, and beautiful little boy. I was blessed have been able to be there in the room during his birth, how amazing! My sister, Sarah, was such a good example to me during her whole labor. She was calm, confident, positive, and determined! Things went perfectly and we got to enjoy Elijah's first moments of life in the real world! The next day, I brought Jeremy and Landon to meet Elijah and we were able to capture a few sweet pictures. A funny story.... when we first got to the room, Sarah placed Elijah on the bed to swaddle him and then told me I could hold him. So with Jeremy standing next to me holding Landon, I leaned over and picked up little Eli and held him in my arms. Landon saw me holding this new baby and started crying! I mean real tears and yelled "Mommy!!". I had no idea he would be jealous of me holding another baby! Sarah suggested I sit down with Eli and have Landon sit with us on the chair so Landon could see him and he calmed down and started hugging and kissing him. They are going to be great cousins!
A few days later, my oldest brother, Pat (who I unfortunately had not seen since our wedding day in 2008 because we live so far away from each other) came to town for a weekend visit! We got to meet his girlfriend Michell, who was a doll! She's very sweet and I'm glad they have found each other. Friday night we had a dinner at my sister Sarah's house. I can't remember the last time all of us kids and my parents were all under one roof! Probably at my wedding, 3 years ago. Crazy! Pat is a B-1 Bomber Pilot with the Air Force and is stationed in Abilene, Texas. He has been deployed to Afghanistan and other locations several times and spent a few years stationed on the east coast, so we were so blessed to finally coordinate a small family reunion despite the distance between us! Saturday night we invited them over to our place for a barbeque. It was short but sweet! A great time to catch up with each other :)
I wanted to share some updated pics of our house. And it has to be documented that I kept a hanging basket of flowers alive all summer! Haha! So here's my proof! Also, if anyone can tell me what kind of flowers I have in my hanging basket, I would be so grateful! The big ones in the center. Not the viney ones with the teeny flowers that I planted around the edges. I don't know if they are annuals or perennials. I am pretty sure they are annuals, so I would love to know what kind they are so I can buy more next spring! They are the perfect flower for my darling little hanging basket. They bloomed all summer long and I just adore the many colors!
Summer is nearing the end. Technically we are still enjoying Summer until the 21st, although it seems like Fall because school has started and the days are growing a little shorter, the nights are getting a bit cooler, and it's time for apple orchards! But I have one more quick thing to write about in this "Summer Synopsis". I am now 32 weeks along with little Gavin and I wanted to be able to capture some pictures of me pregnant before I begin looking like I stuffed an over-sized watermelon in my shirt. It's been almost 2 years (since Landon's birth) since we had professional family pictures taken, so we called up our friend and neighbor across the street, Kirsten to take some photos (She recently started her own photography business and I strongly recommend her. She owns KME Photography. Visit her website and/or "Like" her page on Facebook!) of our growing family! I had some fun picking out our outfits so we somewhat coordinate with each other and Kirsten suggested a beautiful location for the session. On the last evening of August, we drove up the road from our house to Woodland Trails, where Kirsten snapped some amazing pics of us that turned out extremely well considering it was super buggy! But oh so worth it! Below is a sneak peek at some of the pictures we have seen so far, and I'm already in love with them! So excited to see the rest of them. I will try to post a link to more pics when I get them :)
As I mentioned above, I am 32 weeks along in my pregnancy. Tomorrow I will have completed my 33rd week. Yay! Time is going by fast. I feel like the busier we are, the faster it goes. I'm getting to the stage where I am actually feeling the weight of the baby and sleeping at night is getting harder. I have had insomnia now and then throughout this pregnancy, which I did not have with Landon. It's so bizarre for me to lay in bed tossing and turning for hours, and so frustrating! And now it's just uncomfortable to roll over with my huge belly so I wake up a lot. I am praying for an early or on-time, natural birth this time around. I tried this with my first pregnancy and because Landon was 13 days late, pretty big, and positioned wrong, I was forced into a C-Section after laboring for 36 hours. I was not happy with the midwife group I had chosen for my care, so this time around I opted for a professional. An actual OB who has a strong education and over 25 years of experience. I haven't heard a "maybe", "I'm not sure", "I think" or any other annoying answers come out of her mouth when I ask her questions. This woman knows her stuff, she's confident, takes her time, and does what needs to be done. Needless to say, I am very impressed. I did not have this confidence with the midwives. I feel like it's fine to have a midwife take care of you like a nurse during labor, but it's risky to have a midwife monitor your pregnancy when most don't have the education or experience to give you a definite answer and picture of how your pregnancy is progressing. Contrary to the beliefs of some women, not all OB's are complete opposites of midwives in the labor and birthing. I am blessed to have found my OB who is like-minded and is not just an advocate for the "easiest route" but rather wants the best for mother AND baby. I knew she was the one when she was positive about me trying for a VBAC with this second pregnancy. A C-section is always a possibility with any pregnancy, but looking through my records, there were no physical signs that I would not be able to deliver naturally, so I am praying I will go into labor on my own (because they will not induce labor for mothers trying VBACs) and that it's a normal, smooth progression. My due date is October 28th and all I can say is if he comes late, it better not be on Halloween! :) Please pray for us and our little Gavin. I have attached some 3D pics of him at our 20 week ultrasound!
