Big News and a Birthday

As in my birthday!  Not nearly as much fun as they once were, but Olivia was excited.  Mainly because she knows birthdays involve cake.  Michael brought a cake home from work.  Olivia demanded I stay in my room while they got things ready:



Then made me close my eyes, while she led me to the table- singing an off key version of "Happy Birthday:"



Can't think of a better way to spend my birthday!

Olivia and I went to Chattanooga today, had lunch at Chick-Fil-A and did a little shopping at Hobby Lobby!  I wanted to go to Hobby Lobby and get some supplies for my new sewing machine (thanks to some generous birthday gifts from friends and family)!  Let me tell you, a decent sewing machine makes a HUGE difference.  I made this tonight:



I started out only making the skirt, but it came together quickly.  She is obsessed with unicorns right now, so I decided to try applique on a plain white shirt.  The unicorn looks more like a horse, but she likes it:



I've got lots of plans for this sewing machine!

So, the big news- we are NOT moving again.  But....



We are having a baby!  Official due date is December 28th, which puts me a little over 12 weeks pregnant.  I really like the doctor I'm seeing here and he is on top of the blood clotting disorder that (supposedly) caused the issues with Olivia's pregnancy.  I'm on a baby aspirin, a special vitamin, and a low dose antibiotic.  Everything has looked great so far- one of the best things about this doctor is he does an ultrasound at every visit.  What pregnant woman doesn't love ultrasounds?!  This pregnancy has been different than Olivia's, mainly because I've had crazy nausea/morning sickness (which is a sham- it's definitely not limited to mornings!).  I was somewhat nauseous with Livi, but nothing like this pregnancy.  It has started to ease up some the past few days and now that I'm officially in the 2nd trimester, I'm hoping it will be gone completely soon.  We shall see...
Olivia is quite excited about having a baby.  She really wants a baby girl, but tells us a boy will be OK.  We find out July 11th.

I started taking monthly pictures:





I need to take a 3 month, just haven't gotten around to it!

Thanks again to everyone for the birthday wishes!

Swim Lessons

Now that school is out and the Germany trip is over, I've started looking for things for Olivia to do this summer.  Swim lessons was at the top of the list.  The YMCA in Dayton provides lessons.  There isn't a pool at the Y, so they borrow the pool at Bryan College.  2 of Olivia's friends (Sadie and Ava) are in the class, so I thought she would do great!  She was really excited, but things are not going well.  Here she is today, practicing a backstroke- you know, the one where you kick your legs and move your arms over your head, while laying on your back?  Here's Olivia's version:



I'm not sure what is going on, but she is terrified!  Here, the teacher is just trying to get her to move her arms in a side stroke:



The only thing we can think of is the pool is FREEZING.  It apparently has a slow leak, so they have to continuously fill it with cold water.  Today was day 3 of 8, so we'll see how she does tomorrow.  She didn't even stay in the class the whole time today!  I'm also planning on taking her to Cleveland Friday (when she doesn't have lessons) to a warmer pool to see if that makes a difference!  Any tips??