2 is the new 4... or at least in my house

A few Ellison quotes from the past week...

"That is incredible. I need to tell Grandma about this!"

"Mom, I am being silly. I am acting like a 10 year old!"

"I need to go back inside and change my outfit. I don't like this dress." I proceeded to say no and put her in the car. Her response, "I was trying to scare you." (Anotherwards, she was trying to ruffle my feathers.)

Everything is "disgusting"!

"Dad, you are 1!"

Disney Adventure

Showing me Cinderella's Castle

We happened upon Snow White.

Ellison had a very long conversation with Aurora.

She told her all about Snow White, Cinderella's Castle, and the scary ride!

Cinderella was very prim and proper.

Ellison was shy around Minnie and Mickey,

but did give them a hug.

How you know the trip was a success!

You begin to realize you are in your 30s and have settled down, when you decide to head to Disney for your Birthday weekend. The crowds were not bad, the heat was bearable, and Ellison was ready to meet the Princesses, so it was a great day to enjoy the park.

As soon as we arrived into the park, we found Snow White and no line!!! Ellison was so excited to meet her, that we decided to venture on to the Snow White ride... bad move. 30 seconds into the ride and Ellison had her eyes covered and was crying, "I want to go home, this is scary."

Luckily Dumbo perked her up, followed by a meet and greet with Princess Aurora, Princess Cinderella, and Princess Belle. E was a chatterbox with Aurora and told her all about the castle, her visit with Snow White and the scary ride.

We headed on to meet Minnie and Mickey, where Ellison would talk to them but only at the safe distance on 5 feet away. She eventually gave each of them a hug and happily said goodbye.

We had hoped to see Tinker belle, our personal fave (I know I just included myself), but a 1 hour line was not in our future. So instead we met up with Princess Belle in the garden for story hour.

We also threw in a ride on Winnie the Pooh, Tea Cups and Aladdin. And then the grand finale, the parade!

So what were the favorite things from the trip, well here are a few quotes from Saturday evening...

"I want to watch more par-ates." We eventually watched some parades on YouTube.

Who was your favorite princess? "Princess Mermaid" (only saw her from afar)

What was your favorite ride? "My favorite was Snow White. It was scary. Winnie Pooh was a little scary, Snow White was very scary." (who knew?)

First Day of School

Superb photos, I know. Let's just say we were 30 minutes late to school this morning and Ellison was the last to arrive. And yes that is a cookie... and yes, it was only 9:30 in the morning, but a Mom has to do what she has to do to get her child dressed and in the car. And this morning, the leftover cookies from the night before were the only thing on Ellison's radar. I do have to commend myself because she did not have cookies for breakfast, despite her request to do so. Nor did I allow her to have one at 3 am... despite her request.

Luckily, drop off was a lot easier and she never looked back or said good-bye. Cheers to starting school in Ms. Grady's 2 year old class.

Accidents happen

Accidents happen... or do they? This evening after bath time, Ellison went outside in her pjs. She asked to play with the hose and we said "no". Guess what? Next thing we know Ellison had a little potty training accident and had to be hosed off. Amazing how those things happen.

Boys Names

There is a great chance that Graham and I will arrive to the hospital without a name for Baby Boy Clark. We have made several lists, narrowed down lists, and then eliminated the final list. We now have a back up, but not really a sure thing. These are the names Ellison would like to name her brother:
"Kerstyn"
"Kristin"
"Stinky Boots" (she says this with an evil chuckle)
"Ian" (Olivia's brother)

I am not sure if any of those will work for us.

Milestone

Ellison's imagination has gone wild over the summer. She is constantly in her own little world. This week, she took her imagination one step further. She now has two-way conversations with her dolls and ponies and mutates her own voice to talk for the play friend. It is so cute!

Ready, Set, Go... 14 weeks left.

Everyone keeps asking how pregnancy with Baby Boy is different from pregnancy with Ellison, so I thought I would blog on the subject.

Food Cravings:
With Ellison, I seriously ate eggplant parmigiana for lunch and dinner, everyday, for 2 months. I loved cookies and cream ice cream as well. Cravings were constant and I did not do a good job at telling myself no! (Should add that eggplant parmigiana is no longer a favorite food. Completely overdosed.)
With Baby Boy, I have had very few, if any strong cravings. I have found an affection for, brace yourself, gas station taquitos. Which I must add I have never tried until being pregnant with number 2. I also must add that I can completely control this craving and do not find myself driving to Hess purely for a taquito.

Food Aversions:
With Ellison, I had a laundry list of bad foods. Could not stand eggs, coffee, red meat, etc. With Baby Boy, there have been no aversions. I don't feel like coffee, but it does not make me sick.

Carrying the Weight:
For both pregnancies, I have gained over the allotted amount of 15-20 lbs. Seriously, who set this as the appropriate amount? There is a big difference between the 2 pregnancies so far. With E, I gained the weight all over and by this point was super swollen everywhere. I was also only a few weeks away from bed rest. With #2, I have gained mainly in my stomach which is now gigantic with 14 weeks remaining. The doctor has told me that the weight gain this time around is healthy and not to be alarmed. As he said, "You have bigger babies. 15-20 lbs is not reasonable." Love my doctor!

Movement:
E moved constantly! Rarely feel Baby #2. Don't be alarmed, my placenta is placed differently and is blocking me from feeling the movement.

Health:
With Ellison, I was seriously swollen at 26 weeks. I started heading to triage around this time due to high blood pressure. And of course, at 32 weeks I was placed on dreaded bed rest. Also, I had the worst heartburn at all times and could not sleep at night because of it.
Major difference this time around... although I can not wear my wedding ring, I am not swollen. I have been sent to triage once for irregular heart beat. However, I am not alarmed... just need to maintain lower stress levels. I no longer find heartburn a "cute" little symptom of pregnancy that we all must endure. If I experience heartburn, then I cut out the cause of it. Therefore, I no longer eat Italian food! Surprisingly, Mexican or Thai has not caused heartburn... weird. (Hopefully, the cut out method will continue to work) There are only 2 discomforts with this pregnancy. First, exhaustion! Ellison is a bundle of energy at all times. Second, pinched nerves! This is the worst, but I am going to manage it with massages at the spa :)

Overall, I can not complain. Fall semester begins in a week and I feel prepared to start the semester and finish it with a healthy pregnancy. Ready, Set, Go... 14 weeks left!