Fighting cabin fever!

Illinois winters can be beautiful. They can also be freezing cold, icy, and windy, which is the lovely weather that we have been gifted with as of late. We have had several days of "black ice," which occurs after a fog settles and then freezes. The ice is clear so you don't see it until you hit it. Very scary, especially when you are pregnant! I've been wearing my boots nonstop and shuffling like a penguin everywhere I go. Needless to say, when we don't have to be out, we are inside. This can make for some long, dark evenings, and as much as I love a good snow, I am ready for spring. Holden has been a real trooper, and is making the most of his new toys from Christmas, as well as rediscovering some old favorites. It's neat to see him at an age where he is finally able to play independently and use his imagination. Some of the conversations he has with his stuffed animals, construction worker figures, Little People, etc. are hilarious! Here are a few pictures of him at play.

Daddy and Holden enjoy watching movies together on Daddy's laptop. I love seeing them snuggled up together, engrossed in whatever they are watching. This night is was "Cloudy, With a Chance of Meatballs."

Holden loves to play hide and seek! It cracks us up because half the time, he goes in a corner and covers his eyes with his hands. He thinks if he can't see us, we can't see him. :) Or we'll say, "Hmm...I wonder where Holden is..." and he'll yell, "I'm over here behind the door!" Another favorite spot is under the kitchen table. Here he is popping out.

There's always the fun of shooting Nerf gun toys at the cat!

Or you can open your Mommy's umbrella, put your coat on, and pretend it's spring!

Winter, more than any other season, seems to bring on Holden's asthmatic symptoms. While he is not a fan of his nebulizer, he does finally understand that it helps him. When he starts coughing now, he'll often ask for his "nebbie." I think he makes a pretty cute dinosaur. :)

And finally, while the rest of the world is in hibernation, some of us would appear to be blooming, to put it nicely. :) Here are some pictures of Hunter and me at 29 weeks. I feel like I can't stretch much farther, but I know I will! Things looked great at our sonogram this week. He is already weighing around 3 lbs, 12 oz, which is the 95th percentile. My Dr. said if he doesn't come early like Holden, they will be keeping an eye on his size. Yikes! But I am glad he is healthy. He is my little gymnast, and is constantly in motion. You'd think he had to be running out of space in there, but man, can he move. Sometimes my entire stomach jumps and moves, and Holden has told him on more than one occasion, "Hunter, it's not nice to kick!" My pregnancy has been very easy for the most part. The heartburn has gotten pretty bad, and I'm picturing another newborn with lots of hair. But if that's the worst I can complain about, I consider myself very blessed. Looking forward to meeting our new little guy in a few months!

It's been fun being pregnant at the same time as my good friend and co-worker, Annie. She is 6 weeks behind me and also having a little boy-her 3rd! She is just starting to get a notable bump and looks so cute! On more than one occasion we have worn very similar outfits to school which has definitely not been planned. On this day, we both had turquoise shirts, khaki pants, and our boots. Annie will probably kill me for posting these but I think they are hilarious!