It's a...boy?!?!

That is exactly how I felt during my ultrasound last Monday as very clear little boy parts appeared on the flat screen monitor in front of me.  I had joked with my sister a few days before, that if they told me it was a boy, I would tell them to look again.  But even my untrained eyes couldn't deny his obvious gender, and I guess he was pretty sick of being referred to as a girl because those little knees were wide open. 

I had been so sure it was a girl...we all had.  This pregnancy has been so different than my first.  I felt sick all the time and I had strong food aversions among other physical symptoms that I never really experienced with Jake.  Not to mention how emotional I felt/feel with this baby.  I can cry at the drop of a hat, and I just assumed this was because my body was coursing with all sorts of extra estrogen from a baby girl.  Then you add how I was feeling to the fact that Jacob kept telling us we were having a girl.  It didn't matter how many times we asked him or how we phrased the question, for the last 4 months his answer has always been the same, "It's a girl"  Who argues with that?  Remember he did tell me I was having a baby before we told him.  He was right about that, so I just figured his little spirit remembered who was next in our family.  However, knowing Jacob, I wouldn't be surprised if this was the first joke of many that my boys are going to play on me.  And don't think Daddy won't join right in on that fun. :-)

To Arthur's credit, a few weeks before the ultra sound, he did have a dream about our new little boy very similar to the one he had had with Jacob.  However, even that wasn't enough to sway us from believing Jacob.  We just figured Arthur's subconscious was playing the "what if" game.  But we should have known better, Arthur's dreams always come true.

The funny part is that people have misinterpreted my insistence that was a girl for some great longing for a girl.  So many of our family and friend have asked if I am sad or upset that I am having another boy.  I am the opposite actually.  I am ecstatic to have another boy!  Having Jacob has been the best thing that has ever happened to us, how was we be anything but excited to do it again?  I love the idea of Jake and his brother growing up together (not to mention the money we will save by reusing all of the cute clothes we got for Jake) and I hope and pray that they will be the kind of friends my sister and I have been throughout our lives. 

They already look like brothers!  Baby Boy #2 on the top, Jake's 18 week ultrasound on the bottom...I could look at these profiles all day!

Arthur is also trilled to have another son.  Due to his training, he was unable to come to the ultra sound with Jake and I.  So after my appointment I went to store to enlarge some of the photos and bought a blue gift bag to put them in.  When I arrived home, he was already there and dying to find out.  As I handed him the bag I said, "I guess I will be staying home by myself while you boys go hunting."  No man has ever smiled so big. 

A Day in Destin

Since Jake was born we have been blessed, and maybe even a little spoiled with how much time we have been able to spend as a family.  Even being in the army gave us almost 4 months of nearly 24 hour 7 day a week time.  However, since Arthur has started training again this past June, we have all had to transition Daddy being away during the days.  We are all excited to be back on track and getting closer to when Arthur will finally get to fly again, but needless to say we really miss all that "family time."  So this past weekend we decided it was time to take an overdue trip to beautiful Destin beach for some quality time...just the three (and a half) of us.

It was an awesome day!  The last time we visited Destin was during Aunt Robyn's visit back in May, and Jake had no interest in even putting his feet in the water.  So this trip we made sure to come fully equipped with a bucket full of sand toys with the expectation that Jake would not be leaving the beach (at least not willingly).  However, I was pleasantly surprised when, after just minutes, Jake asked me to take him to follow Daddy into the water.  I guess our trips to the pool have really paid off.  That and Jacob has really grown up this summer.  He is a little less cautious and has much more confidence trying new things and doing things by himself. 




While Jacob did great, as a California girl, there are several things about the Florida Gulf that I had to adjust to during this trip.  

First, the water is crazy warm which would amazing except that this appears to provide the perfect environment for green algae...lots and lots of thick green algae.   Second, it is strange to be the ocean and not have any real waves.  While I missed that amazing sound of crashing waves, the calm water does make playing in the water with a toddler much easier.  Finally, after spending time along many of California beaches all along the coast I cannot recall many times when the temperature has exceeded 90 degrees and even then the heat is usually accompanied by a nice coastal breeze.  Nope, no coastal breezes here...just 100 degree hot sticky air.  Nonetheless, I shouldn't complain, we had such a great time playing in the ocean as a family and a little (or a lot) of algae wasn't going to ruin our fun.                                 

However, even with our trips into the water and our frequent water breaks, Arthur and I were ready to get out of the sun after about an hour and half.   

Jake on the other hand, would have stayed and played in the sand all day, but his flushed cheeks were tell tale sign that his little body was also ready for air conditioned climates.  

Destin is a vacation town so we had no trouble finding thing to fill the rest of our afternoon.  We made a stop at Bass Pro shop for the boys.  Arthur left with a hat, and Jake left with a shirt, a fishing pole, and a bag of licorice.  We don't mean to spoil him...it just happens.  Then after an overpriced lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe, it was time for some sale shopping at the outlet mall.  I can't pass up a trip to Oshkosh.  If your look at our pictures closely, you will notice it is all Jake wears.  Luckily for our bank account, we did not yet know the gender of Baby #2, but I had no trouble finding some cute things for Jake.  We ended with trip at the Stride Rite outlet, where both Jake and Arthur walked out in a pair of new shoes.  As you read this you might be asking yourself, "Mom, what did you get?"  My answer, a perfect day with my two favorite people and a really quite drive home.  I love family days.