The Accidental Boilermaker

Evelyn and I went to the zoo this morning.  The zoo closes early October so I was excited for one last change to see the animals. We met up with Evelyn's friend Bella and her mom Maryca.  The wagon worked really well.  The girls were happy to sit and be pulled around while they looked at the animals. Evelyn and Bella are the same age and they play very nicely together.  It was great going to the zoo in the middle of the week, lots of room for the girls to run around. Evelyn got to brush a goat.  Kind of sad that we have to go to the zoo now to see farm animals.

I had a doctors appointment today.  I am at 24 weeks but I measured at 23.  The doctor was not worried.  He also said the heart beat sounded good. Swim lessons went okay today.  Evelyn wasn't real excited about practicing some new skills, like floating on her back.  But changing out of her swim suit went a hundred times better.

My parents came over for the weekend.  Evelyn got an early Christmas present, a wagon!  We've gone a couple rides through the neighborhood and she seems to quite enjoy it. Evelyn also got a pumpkin.  It goes well with the mums. Today for a treat we got ice cream.  Such a grumpy face for such a yummy snack.

Tuesday we had swim lessons.  Evelyn did great in the pool but once it came time to change back in the locker room she would not take off her swim suit.  I was this close to letting her ride home wet in the car seat. Wednesday we celebrated the first day of fall with some autumn themed chalk drawings. Today we went to story time.  Evelyn didn't want to leave the house without Nate's baseball cap.  Thankfully she didn't insist on wearing it into the library.

We saw Purdue play (and lose badly) to Virginia Tech yesterday.  At least Evelyn wore the right jersey. It a long day, but a really fun day too.  We asked a lot of Evelyn and she really stepped up and did great.  We first met up with some old friends from when I worked at the hospital in Lafayette.  Then we had lunch with Meredith and Jeremy before heading over to the stadium.  First though a stop at the Crew house. Then another stop for Insomnia Cookies.  Evelyn says "Less pictures and more cookies!" A quick picture with Neil Armstrong. It was family day so there were a lot of different activities to check out before kick off. We did get a few questions about why Evelyn was wearing a VT jersey when her parents were both in Purdue shirts.  It was fun sharing our "story" with people. Evelyn did great during the game.  I walked around the concourse with her during the second quarter but otherwise she sat w...

Evelyn started swim lessons again yesterday.  I thought the water was a little cool, but she didn't seem to mind.  She is in the next level up so the focus is a little more on actual swimming and less on songs and games. We had to make a quick stop after lessons before going home which pushed back lunch and nap time which we just skipped altogether.  Instead, we made apple cinnamon scones.  No nap made for a long afternoon and a very sleepy Evelyn at dinner time.  She rallied for bath time, but was in bed before 7:00.

Today was be a tourist in your hometown.  A bunch of museums and other Fort Wayne areas of interest were free to the public.  We met up with some new friends for lunch and then went to the science museum. The museum is nice, but not surprisingly, most of the exhibits are geared toward older kids.  Evelyn still had fun running around and pressing buttons.  She especially liked the water table. She also enjoyed the fossils and rocks. The skateboards were a big hit too although I don't remember the science behind them. After the museum, we took a short walk to the original Fort Wayne.  Lots of people in period costume doing cool stuff like spinning wool.  

We went back to story time this morning.  Evelyn seemed more focused and was better able to participate in the different songs and games. This is a good example of Evelyn's new climbing abilities.  I was making dinner and turned around to find her reading her library books. Since our chairs are kind of high and I don't trust Evelyn to not fall off, I quickly brought over a safer alternative. Ahh, much better.  Plus I got to "listen" to stories while I cooked.

Meredith and Jeremy came over for the holiday weekend.  Evelyn recently got a ball for the background and she loves to chase after it. After Evelyn went to bed, we played Exploding Kittens.  A mostly just chance card game that involves avoiding explosive kittens.  I'm not sure Penny approved. Meredith and Jeremy also picked up doughnuts from Rise and Roll, reportedly the best doughnuts in Fort Wayne.  Evelyn is enjoying what is affectionately referred to as Amish crack or a cinnamon sugar doughnut. Sunday we went apple picking.  It was a nice little orchard with only a few varieties available right now but close enough to our house that we may go back later in the fall. With a little help, Evelyn made a good apple picker. Lots and lots of apples!  It was a fun morning but then we watched Purdue lose and we all were sad, Today I made a dutch apple pie.  Tomorrow I think I will make applesauce since it is one of ...

Evelyn turned 19 months old yesterday.  We had a play date with the mom and daughter we met at the park on Tuesday, this time to play on the splash pad.  Evelyn seemed to have a really fun time. Evelyn's new favorite word is help. Both when she needs help, like when she is trying to climb up on something (I think climbing is her new favorite activity) and when she wants to help you.  So I have been trying really hard to create fun activities she can help with in addition to regular chores.  For example sorting and organizing all her old baby clothes and planting flowers.   We went to Menards today and bought some mums.  Evelyn helped pour the dirt into the planters and then water the flowers. After dinner we went out for ice cream to celebrate Nate's first full real week of work and I'm 20 weeks.  Halfway through till baby #2 comes!

To get out of the house this morning, Evelyn and I went to a park that is pretty close to the house (we pass it on our running route).  She was very interested in the big kid swings and actually did really well.  I didn't push her that high. She also was much more willing to play on the slides which is a nice change of pace.  The tunnel slide proved to be a little challenging as Evelyn was hesitate to go down without help, but then there's no one at the bottom to catch her.  Luckily there was another mom at the park with a daughter the same age as Evelyn so we kinda stationed one at the top of the slide and one at the bottom. Then this afternoon we got to see baby #2!  Gender is still a surprise.  But baby must of been super cooperative (hopefully a sign of things to come) because the ultrasound maybe took 15 minutes.  The doctor said everything looked good. Nate originally took the whole afternoon off, but decided to go back becau...