Whittle Railroad

Connor and I headed over to the Whittle Shortline Railroad which is literally right across 141 from us.  We had heard about it from a couple different people but never had ventured over...until now.  And now that we now it is so close, so fun, and completely free-- I think we will be going back time and time again.  What is the Whittle Shortline Store?  It is a room full of train tables and puzzles.  Connor had a blast playing with all the trains and building his own track.  He did so good at jumping right in and not being shy (which is starting to occur more and more).  The only thing he was disappointed in was the fact that he could not join in the birthday party that was going on upstairs.  Here are a few pictures of our little conductor.

"Mom I'm trying to play, do you have to take my picture right now?"

The "Biiiiig" train table

Sunny Days...

Grandma and Grandpa treated several of the grand kids to see Sesame Street Live at the Peabody Opera House.  A few of the parents could not attend because they were out of town or having babies, so Mike, Aunt Maria, Grandma, Grandpa, and myself took the 7 kids to go see the show.  Not going to lie, I was a little nervous-- but all the kids did great and absolutely LOVED the show.  Connor felt the need to point out Elmo every time he came on stage and he sat and watched and danced along the whole time.  Somebody most of let their Elmo balloon go because there was one on the ceiling.  Connor kept pointing to it and saying "Come down Elmo"- ha!  It was so much fun to see all the kids faces as they watched, sang along, and danced during the show.  It was a big hit and I am so glad we got to go.  Thank you SOOO much Grandma and Grandpa!!

We made it to our seats!

Family pic

Anthony, Grandpa, and Izzy

Cole, Anna, and Anthony

Very focused on the show

Sweet Elizabeth

The Sesame Street gang

The three older kids enjoying the show

Grandma and Izzy

Connor and Aunt Maria clapping along

Double Sweetness

Today my brother Bill and sister-in-law Michelle welcomed their twin boys into the world.  Nicholas was born weighing 6lbs 13oz and Gabriel was 7lbs 1oz.  They both have full heads of dark hair and couldn't be any cuter.  We are just thrilled for the entire family and so happy these little guys are here safe and sound.  Connor and I got to go meet our new nephews/cousins tonight.

Gabe is on the left and Nick is on the right

Check Up

Today we went for Connor's 2 year check up at the doctor.  Connor was not a fan of being weighed and measured, but other than that he did pretty well while Dr. M examined him.  He got a clean bill of health and Dr. M said he is right where he needs to be developmentally.  Some things we are supposed to work on this year are shapes, the alphabet, counting, and (most importantly in my book) potty training.  Connor cried when he had to get a shot, but the nurse gave him a Cars sticker and that seemed to make it all better. :-)  The good news is no more shots until he is 4-- woo hoo!!

Connor weighs in at 30lbs and he is 35.75" tall.  That puts him in the 74% for weight and 84% for height.  He is still a big boy and we love every little inch of him.

I think the shot made him tired, because he has been chilling like this all night (not normal Connor behavior), but he is still smiling.

Two!

Connor turns two years old today-- how is that possible?  We started the day off with donuts, then he went to Ms. Lisa's house for fun with his friends, cupcakes, and presents.  Tonight Mike came home early from work, we had dinner, ice cream, and played all night.  He had a fun day and is thankful for all the birthday wishes from all our family and friends.  Tomorrow we go for his 2 year check up.  I will post his stats then.

Connor Michael,
I can't believe you are 2 years old!  You are such a sweet little boy and we couldn't love you any more than we do.  From the moment you get up until the moment you sleep, you are constantly on the move.  You have one speed...fast!  You love to play with trains, puzzles, Woody and Buzz, and with Play-doh.  You will sit still to watch some movies.  Your favorites are Toy Story, Shrek, Nemo, and Cars.  You know most of your colors.  You are a Daddy's boy.  The second you hear the garage door go up, you go running to the door to great him.  You love to wrestle and play ball-- you are all boy and we wouldn't change a thing about you.  You have a mischief smile that makes me laugh.  I can't wait to see what this year has in store for you.  You are turning into such a handsome, fun loving little boy and I love watching you grow and learn everyday. We are so proud of you and so proud to call you our little boy.  Happy second birthday Connor.
All my love,
Mommy

Bed Head Boy

Loves Donuts

The forced "Cheeese!"

Birthday Party

We celebrated Connor's 2nd birthday with a baseball party.  He had a blast playing with all the kids and eating all the yummy ballpark foods. Thank you so much to Aunt Maria and Uncle Evan for letting us host the party at their house.  And thank you to everyone that was able to come celebrate with us.  We are so lucky to have so many wonderful people that love our little man so much.  Here are some pictures from the little bash.

Dessert table and yummy candy

Our little family

I love this picture of Kate-- she walked around with her popcorn bin

Blowing out his candle

Opening presents

In the Words of My Mom...

"Remission is such a nice word."  That is right-- my Dad is officially in remission!!  WOOHOO!!  He had a CT scan and a PET scan today.  The Lymphoma is gone. My Dad still has a spot on one of his kidneys and has to go to a urologist to see what it is and how they will take care of it.  Dad will have surgery on Tuesday to fix his broken arm.  There is now a light at the end of this long tunnel and we couldn't be more relieved and excited!

Congratulations Dad-- we are so proud of you and so happy for you.  You are a true inspiration to us all and have taught us once again how important it is to fight hard.  You continue to amaze me everyday. We love you and hope you start feeling better soon!

Thank all of you for your countless thoughts and prayers.  We have felt them every step of the way and could not of gone through this journey without the love and support of our family and friends.  Thank you!

24 Weeks

I turned 24 weeks pregnant with our baby boy this week.  Time is flying this go around.  By this point with Connor, we had a nursery painted and a crib up...not even close to that point right now.  :-)  I am feeling great and love feeling all the little kicks and movements this little man gives me each day.  I don't go back to the doctor until 26 weeks-- I will have another ultrasound and my glucose test at that appointment.  Can't wait to get another peak and see how he is growing.  We're still working on a name (hopefully he will have one by April).  Here is a picture of my baby bump this week...getting bigger.

Monkey Joe's

Where do you take an almost 2 year old boy with tons and tons of energy?  To a room full of bounce houses of course!  Mike and I took Connor to Monkey Joe's today since we both had the day off.  Connor had a blast!  He had fun in the little kid area, but so badly wanted to be a big kid.  He did great in some of the big kid jumpers, but got trampled in a few others.  Needless to say, Connor crashed when we got home (mission accomplished!).  I can't help but think how much fun he will have in a couple years with his little brother jumping and running along with him.

One Year Ago...

Paige Jordan Steinhoff was born.  She has touched many lives and has changed mine forever. 

Happy first birthday sweet Paige. We love you and miss you SO much!  Not a day has gone this past year that I haven't thought of you.  We hope you have a wonderful day in Heaven with a fabulous party!  We are so proud to call you our niece and cousin.
All our love,
Aunt Marcia, Uncle Mike, and Connor

Happy New Year!

2011 is over and we JOYFULLY welcome 2012!  The last week of 2011 was a little rough for us.  I was sick this week, Connor has several teeth coming in and has been very crabby, and Mike was involved in a car accident on Wednesday (he is fine, but we are down a car until we get a rental tomorrow).  Needless to say, we felt it best to just stay home last night to ring in the new year.  Connor made it to 915 and then went to bed.  Mike and I struggled to make it until 11, so we celebrated with a glass of sparkling white grape juice with New York and called it a year.  We don't even have one picture to post.  But honestly it was a great night  and we are happy to be have spent the night as a family.

We hope you all had a safe and happy new year and we wish you all a happy, healthy, and blessed 2012!