Blake Michael

 Welcome to the world, Blake Michael VandenBerg!! 

(Named after my Dad, of course :-)

 We decided not to tell anyone except our parents that we were having our baby on Monday, May 23rd.  So on that morning, at 5:30AM, we left our house in anticipation of having a c-section at 7:30.  We got to the hospital and got all hooked up to IV's and monitors and in no time, we had another baby boy in our arms!  Blake Michael came into the world at 7:54AM.  He was 8 pounds 13 ounces, 22 inches long.  He had a healthy set of lungs too!!  Steve and I spent a few hours with him on our own and then at about 10AM we called our parents and they came up to see him.  I was VERY out of it until about 3PM when I started to feel semi-normal.  We called our friends and just enjoyed sitting with our new little boy.

Charlie came up to the hospital with my mom and at first, he wasn't sure what to think.  I think that he was a little scared because I was in a hospital bed and had IV's in and I didn't look quite right to him.  He came up again the next day and then he wanted to hold him and touch him.  He's been great with him ever since!  We are such a happy little family!  I think that these two boys are going to be great friends!

On thursday, we got to take Blake home.  It was a little nerve-racking thinking about taking on another little life, but it has been great.  Charlie is a little impatient with me cause I'm always feeding Blake.  Well, I feel like I'm always feeding him :-)  But I think in time, Charlie will be fine.  Grandma Gallup has been great in helping me out too.  She'll come and take Charlie on bike rides and to play with her so I can have a little peace during the day.  I'm VERY thankful for that!  By the end of this summer, he'll probably be glad for me to go back to work so that he has someone to play with other than me!

Thanks to everyone for their prayers and well wishes during and after this pregnancy.  It was a hard one, much different than Charlie, but in the end...it was totally worth it!

A picture for you

Pics from an ultrasound I had a few weeks ago.  These pictures look just like Charlie's ultrasound pictures!  They estimated 8lbs 6oz, give or take a pound.  They also told me that the baby has tons of hair!  I'm looking forward to meeting him/her!

Counting Down the Days

I haven't blogged much about this pregnancy and I can tell you why.  I don't think that I ever wanted to admit that I was pregnant, or to get my hopes up!  Well, I can tell you now that I am for sure having another baby and it's due in less than a week!!  We didn't find out what we are having, and I'm DYING to know!  Everyone is guessing and about 80% of people say it's a girl.  I change my mind on a daily basis.  I don't really care what I have, as long as it's healthy. 

Everyone has said that every pregnancy is different and that is an understatement.  My pregnancy has been not only different, but completely opposite. 

With Charlie:
I had NO morning sickness.  None.  Not even a gag.
I had horrible back pain, starting at around 16 weeks.
I gained a TON of weight, and I showed it.  I like to say I was "a house".
My wedding ring didn't fit as of January 27, and I was due April 3.
I slept awesome and never got up to pee.
I never worried about a thing

With this one:
I had nasty morning sickness, even as of one week ago I still took Zophran.
I had some back pain, but it went away around 20 weeks (Thank the Lord.)
I have gained weight, but I "don't look pregnant from the back" which makes me smile :-)
I'm still wearing my wedding ring and no, I didn't get it re-sized.
I sleep like crap, and get up to pee probably 2 times each night.
I am a complete worry wart this time, but I think I have good cause.

That makes me think that this one is a girl, but I don't want to get my heart set on one, cause I really truely don't care which one it is.  I hope to get a girl someday, but if this one isn't I won't be heartbroken.  I've been measuring big almost this whole pregnancy even asking if there is more than one in there (which I've been told there is NOT)  I'm scheduled for a c-section but my OB says I could go on my own.  I find that hard to believe since, with Charlie, I didn't go on my own no matter what we tried!  Even at the end in the hospital, I still didn't do anything on my own.

I'm getting to the stage where I think, "Whoa, this is really happening" I'm going to have 2 kids in a week or so, and that is scary!  How can I possibly love this baby as much as I love Charlie?  I don't want Charlie to feel neglected but being 3, I don't know if he'll understand that I'm pretty much tied to this baby for a while.  I hope he adjusts well, but you never can tell. 

I can't wait to meet this little miracle and finally tell everyone if I get another son or a daughter!!

We'll keep you posted!

Transformation!

This weekend was transformation weekend over here!  We moved Charlie into our old bedroom in a twin bed and then converted his toddler bed back into the crib.  Charlie was giggling and jumping up and down the whole time we were putting his bed together.  It was really cute!  He was loving his new room and playing on the bed, so Steve started to change the crib back. 

My parents were here helping out and my Dad was occupying Charlie in the living room.  He wanted a juice box, so my dad said to go ask your mom.  So, Charlie walks into the nursery and says, "Mom, could I have a Jui-WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO MY OTHER BED!!!??"

After explaining that this wasn't his bed anymore and he had a new room, we all just cracked up!  It is probably one of the funnier things that Charlie has ever said! 

I think he's getting used to the fact that he has a new room.  Sometimes when he is excited he still runs into the other room, but mostly he knows his new room is where he goes now.  We can also fit two kids in the room easily, so that's a relief for the next time around :-)

Now if only we could get something to fill that other room.....

Renovations!

As you know, we have a baby on the way.  Well, there wasn't enough rooms renovated in our house for the kids to have seperate rooms.  Steve and I decided to redo the upstairs and use that as our room for now.  When the kids get older, we can probably put a few of them up there, cause it's huge!!  Above is the "BEFORE" shot..

 After the blown-in insulation and the half wall built.

 Steve took out the chimney too, for added space!!

 Paint on the walls!

 New stairs!

 Trim and carpet

And we are done!!  We made it, just in time for the baby to be born!  There are a few things that we need to get for upstairs, but it is structurally done!  I'm so excited!  What a talented hubby I have!

Snow Storm!!

That huge snowstorm we had two weeks ago??  Charlie decided it would be a fun time to take out all his toys.  They weren't exactly the toys I thought that he would get out...but whatever floats his boat!!

 We did do some shoveling first....

 Then a little teeball...Spring Fever anyone?

 Then came the tractor with the trailer..he did haul snow!

 And lastly, the car!  It was cracking me up that all he wants to do was play with all the toys he plays with in the summer.  We went on the sled for a little, but he was enjoying the other toys WAY better!

Just a little picture of our super high snow piles!!

Just like his Daddy

Steve has had this ongoing battle about Charlie liking Mommy more than Daddy. Well, I have noticed lately that Charlie is really starting to cling to Daddy, and I LOVE seeing it! He is a spitting image of Steve and it makes my heart swell watching the two of them together. I don't know how Steve is going to be able to split him time if this next one is a boy!

Shoveling after the first big snow

I asked for a smile instead of just saying, "Say Cheese!" I love the smile better!

This was the "Say Cheese" picture. Charlie wanted to have popcorn for snack and then said, "I want to watch football with Daddy." So they did!

Saying goodnight and a quick cuddle with Daddy before bedtime! So cute!

Big News!

Yup, you read that right. Charlie is going to be a big brother! We are past the scary part this time around and had our ultrasound this past week. Everything is on track with the little one and it is comfy in my belly. We didn't find out what we are having and it's driving Steve nuts! He REALLY wants to know! But I laid down the law and said no! So we have a little surprise coming to us around May 25th!

Helicopter sighting!

We had an auction at our church for our new building and there was a helicopter ride that was won by a few couples. I thought it would be a fun thing for Charlie to watch so we met at the church when it came time to pick up the couples. He loved it!! He was laughing and pointing, but he definitely didn't want to sit in it!! It was a fun day for all!

THERE IT IS!!

Kids learn quick

At the cottage this year, Candy Bars were a huge hit! The kids went crazy when we took them out. I was trying to get a good picture of all the cousins and I got a few. Then Janna said,

"Who wants a candy bar?"

This was the next picture. Kids crack me up!
(I personally thought Charlie's face was the best, but that's just me :-)

Catching up

So it's been a LONG while since I've gotten on here and posted! Sorry about that, I'll try to be better. Here's a snippet of whats been going on lately.

Charlie had his first black eye. He hit his head while jumping off something (big surprise, I know) and his forehead quickly healed and his black eye appeared.....

We bought a new "family" vehicle. Really, Steve just needed a new truck and the ranger didn't fit us all. So we considered this and upgrade. :-)

The "August Birthday Girls" and our hubbys went on our annual birthday dinner to the Melting Pot. It was good and Fondue was better than I thought! It was a fun night!
Dinner!

I promise I'm going to try to keep up on the blog! Don't give up on me yet!

SLACKER!

I have been seriously slacking in the blogging department....

Here's a few pics from camping at the end of June!

Running down the beach with Daddy

Making a monkey face for mommy!

Sitting by the pool.....

Jumping in the pool, this kid has no fear!

More to come!

And there he was

Charlie had been climbing out of his crib for about a month now but we have refused to change his crib over to a toddler bed, just cause most times he does stay in. Well, last night he decided to climb out repeatedly, 9 TIMES!! So I finally told him if he comes out again, he gets a spanking. He didn't come out of the room, but I knew he was out of his crib. I just let him be and finally didn't hear any noise coming from his room. When I went to bed, I checked on him. Sure enough, he wasn't in his crib. I looked all over and found him under the chair fast asleep.

I guess we are converting the bed today, so he doesn't break his neck!

Mother's Day Blues

Mother's Day is supposed to be a great day when moms don't have to do much. Today was a day that I realized that I should have almost a mother for the second time around this mother's day. I feel like I'm holding on too hard, but I'm hoping with time that this pain will fade.

You never said you're leaving

You never said goodbye

You were gone before I knew it

and only God knows why

A million times I needed you,

a million times I cried

If love alone could have saved you

you never would have died

In live I loved you dearly

In death I love you still

in my heart you hold a place

that no one else can fill

It broke my heart to lose you

but you didn't go alone

For part of me went with you

the day God took you home.

I Love you Baby V, and miss you on this mother's day.

My Cool dude and his sweet new wheels

Charlie got a haircut tonight at Salon500 (yay Judy H.!) and he looks like such a big boy! Of course when we got home he wanted to go outside and ride his new tricycle! And everyone knows you can't ride a trike and not wear your sunglasses. So here are some pictures for your entertainment! My cool dude on his new trike.

"Come on Mommy! You're holding us up!"

Charlie's 2nd Birthday party

Friday night, we had a family birthday party for Charlie. We had burgers and cake and opened presents, but NO SINGING! We sang to him Sunday at my grandparent's house and he started bawling! So we decided not to ruin his party! :-) We had a great time with the family and Charlie got COMPLETELY spoiled! Thanks to all our family for all the love you have for Charlie!

Happy Birthday Little Man

Dear Charlie,

Today you are 2! Can you believe it? Your Daddy and I can't. It seems like just last week we were anxiously awaiting your arrival, and planning for a new little life in our family. Time has flown by since then, and you are one busy boy! You have grown up so much in the past year, and it has been incredible. You started out your second year barely walking, and now you are running around, jumping and even riding a bike! You could talk before you were one, but now you talk in sentences and articulate your words like a kindergartner!

When I told you this morning that it was your birthday, you said "Nooooo!" I had to agree because you are growing up too fast! You barely want to cuddle by me, and I have to put in a movie just so you'll sit still for longer than 2 minutes!

I love it when I get to put you to bed. We cuddle and sing together. Last week, you even sang "Jesus Loves Me" for me. Tonight I let Daddy put you to bed because you didn't get a lot of together time on your birthday. I told you that I loved you, and you said "I Love you, Mommy" and melted my heart. I heard you singing with daddy and I hope you will always continue to sing to Jesus, and give your life to Him. We hope for the best for you all the time and pray for you daily.

You love to read books and you already know your nursery rhymes! I can start them and you can finish them. You know which books you like and which ones you don't. Everyone who hears you talk in stores or out and about thinks you are way older than you actually are. They tell me your "advanced", but I try not to get a big head about it. :-) Sometimes Daddy and I look at each other after you say something and wonder where you get it from! You say things that surprise us sometimes, but we love how well you are doing.

Your fascination with big trucks and loaders is just like your daddy. If you had to pick between candy and a big truck, you'd probably pick the truck. You'd probably come back for the candy too! You love to be outside and play all day. Even if it is freezing cold, you are still out there, runny nose and all!

You try to be just like your daddy all the time. With your "baby" wheelbarrow and your shovels, you do exactly what daddy is doing. I love the fact that you love your daddy and want to be like him. If you turn out like him, we have done what we should have as parents. I really hope that for you.

I love watching you grow and enjoy each new day with you. There will be a day when you will think that your mom is a crazy woman, but I hope you know it's because I would do give my life for you. Your Daddy and I love you very much!

Happy birthday buddy,

Love, Mommy

Just like Daddy

Charlie is just like his daddy. He loves to be outside and do all things boy. The only thing that is different about him is that he does NOT like to be dirty! It's kinda funny actually, everytime he falls, he needs his hands brushed off before he will go on playing.
My mom and I were shopping at Kohls one night and we found this small shovel and rake and it was probably the best investment I made so far this year! He loves to help daddy dig in the dirt, and in his new sandbox. Steve's mom also sent Steve's old wheelbarrow home with us one day, and now Charlie loves to push dirt around. I'm not sure if it helps or hinders Steve, but he is a good sport and helps him out, and tries to work around him.

They are cute together aren't they?