September - last minutes before Baby #5

September...still fat feet, still waiting for the surprise of Baby #5 to be revealed. A greater urgency to enjoy all the things before the season of "Newborn" begins again. We spend our Labor Day weekends in Canada celebrating the birthday buddies - Uncle Joe and Catherine.

On the way home, we stopped at the lake house for one more dip in the water before the warmth of summer is gone. We went extra crazy and grabbed some ice cream Drumsticks at Mejier for a treat!

Mommy finished the Advent calendar for the Bols. This seems to be how she "nests" before a baby arrives.

It was an extra pretty September. All the best sunrises and sunsets, the sun hit the front door window just right so that we ate breakfast covered in rainbows, park-time after school, zoo-time whenever we could, and Simon had plenty of lovely mornings to wear out the battery of his little lawn mower.

We supported the dental industry. Simon had his first teeth cleaning. And Vivian got her facemask. She has to wear it 10-13 hours a day; while sleeping, but not while at school which was a huge relief for her! She managed the whole thing really well! It was a tough orthodontic road for this girl with the underbite. But she braved all the expander turning (out and in for 6 weeks!) and the facemask wearing really well. Within a week, she was able to maneuver the rubberbands and facemask on her own!

 We took the kids to a kids' flight festival at the county airport near our house. Simon and Felicity got to play in bounce houses, see inside the hospital's helicopter, and sit in an airplane.

Miriam and Vivian took an actual flight!

And as the clock wound down on this pregnancy, we celebrated Tim's birthday, 

 snuck in a few more Waffle Cone Wednesdays at TCBY,

 and enjoyed our parish's picnic.

Tim got to take Vivian on a field trip, one of his favorite parenting duties.

We wrapped up the month with the county fair! Each girl got to show off their hard work on 4-H projects. Miriam sent her Beekeeping and Foods (peanut butter cookies!) projects to the State Fair, so this was a big year for her!

 Felicity sewed a pillow for Mini 4-H.

 And after weeks of "practice", Vivian submitted her yummy No Bake Cookies.

And it wouldn't be Fair Week without donuts and a few rides!

Baby's due date, September 29th, Tim's birthday, came and went. And we continued to wait patiently.

August

August began with a Bridal Shower for Aunt Nichole. Tim took the toddlers to the "train park" in Waterloo. Almost 9 months later (yes, that's how backlogged the blog is), Simon still talks about the train park. Unfortunately, with coronavirus in the air, it doesn't look like it will be open for play again too soon.

What could be better than watching trains pass as you play?

The pretty girls cousins were all together at the shower.

Our summer days were winding down - school was starting back up again soon. It was crunch time for fun. First, off to the lake to catch baby fish and bob around in the water.

A trip to our favorite splash pad with Aunt Bridget and the kids.

Walks, picnics, popsicles...keep the summer days coming.  (See those underwear? No, potty training wasn't/isn't going well.)

Aunt B and Uncle E invited us to spend an afternoon at the lake with them. We don't have a boat, jet ski, or kid kayaks at our lake place so it was a real treat to play with all these toys! Felicity took a bit to get used to maneuvering through the water with a paddle but once she figured it out it was hard to get her back on land.

We celebrated a 50th anniversary at the "pool park" in Coldwater, Ohio and got to swim again. 

The last night of summer break was family date night. We took the kids to the restaurant where we had our first date and told them the story of how we met. We even ordered the famous bread pudding we ate on that date! Still so delicious.

Then it was back to school...and the rush of the mornings, busy-ness of the afternoons, and earlier bedtimes. 

First Day of School 2019-20

Simon misses his sisters so much when they're gone all day. Mommy, in her third trimester, became his playmate. "Push me in the laundry basket!" "Play trains with me." "Push me on the swings!" "Let me spray you."

Mommy missed those girls more than ever! Playing at the zoo with Aunt Bridget, Elijah, and Veronica helped Simon pass the hours.

And when Mommy tried to rest, he often found her and stayed close.

Daddy found a fun app to entertain the girls...

Check out that bump!

Miriam's 4-H club worked the cruise-in and parade for the ACD Festival. Tim was pretty thrilled to work the event with her and check out all the classic cars up close.

We closed out August by adding a bit of beauty to the home. We brought in a few a Felicity's beautiful sunflowers.

Mommy finished Simon's quilt for his big boy bed...the night he decided he was done with the crib!

One step closer to being ready for baby #5 to arrive.