A Construction Site Birthday Party

For Graham's third birthday he wanted a Construction Site theme. He is in LOVE with the book "Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site," and loves all kinds of construction equipment especially excavators. Since we still have really nice weather in March it was also a great party to have outside and limit the mess and clean up. 

I was really proud of myself for making this a manageable party and reducing the amount of projects and details I wanted to do. I really had so many more ideas that would have been super time consuming, more money and just were not that important at the end of the day. Even John commented how impressed he was! We did go over our guideline of inviting only as many kids that fit at our dining room table (8) mostly because the party was going to be outside and because when we started adding in just our family friends and their kids (who are all around Graham's age) we were at 8 and I hated to not have some school friends there as well. So I increased our number to 12 and it was still a nice and manageable number!

Here is our front door area….Caution, Graham's Birthday Zone Ahead!

The favors were in John's tool box and were not very much because the kids also went away with their own construction hat and vest that they wore at the party. But I found adorable construction site themed rubber duckies that included in the bag with some candy.

 

The first stop for the guests was to "Punch the Clock" and pick up their hats and vests before heading out the construction site. Some kids were very much into their costume and others not so much but they were so cute when they did wear them! These were also given out as favors when they left.

Then the kids headed outside to our construction site. We had seven different stations set up for them….a coloring station, "Hammer Away" which was a block of styrofoam and some golf tees and little wooden hammers, "Dig Away" which was our water table with sand instead and some trucks, "Bridge Building" which was toothpicks and marshmallows for them to build things, "Ring Toss" which is pretty self explanatory, "Break Time" which was a bubble machine and individual bubbles to play with and then the "Build it and Demo it" which was a homemade wrecking ball hanging from a tree and various sized boxes to build something and then demo it down. Lots of fun!

Graham at the "Dig Away" station

Friends working at "Bridge Building"

Graham's creation at the Bridge Building station

"Hammer Away" station with his friend

Graham was such a good birthday boy. He loved welcoming everyone and then would tell everyone goodbye and thank you for coming to his party. He was having so much fun he didn't want to stop for pictures! 

Peyton (although seems mad in the picture…she was just being bossy) was awesome! She was so excited for Graham and wanted to make sure he had everything he wanted and was happy and having a good time. Even in the morning Graham started throwing around the "I'm the birthday boy," card when they were taking turns doing something and she graciously just let him pick and was all about making this day awesome for him. So sweet and such a wonderful thing to watch!

Being in charge….

This was the set up when you walked out the door with the table/food for kids on the right and then an adults "Refuel Here" station with coffee and pastries.

The table had road stripes running along it

"Gravel" also known as Puppy Chow  

Grapes as "Boulders"

Yummy homemade gluten free chocolate donuts with a chocolate glaze as "Truck Tires"

Rice Crispy treats dipped in colored chocolate with sticks as "Paint Brushes"

Oranges as "Wrecking Balls"

Gluten free chocolate cake with gluten free chocolate brownies mixed with brown sugar in the middle as dirt. Graham LOVED his dirt cake and that the candles were actual construction equipment

The wrecking ball area….so much fun and the kids loved it and played there forever!

It was such a fun birthday and Graham LOVED his party. He had so much fun and was appreciative of everything. We loved celebrating with our friends and it was just a great day celebrating our sweet boy!

And onto T-Ball….

With soccer season winding down, T-ball season is starting up. We originally didn't sign Peyton up because she didn't seem all that interested when we asked her and then her two of her friends moms was coaching a team and needed another player and well, that changed her mind apparently. It works out well because there is only one week of overlap with soccer so we aren't having too many commitments and it is another thing to get her active during the week.

They had their first practice this week and I was surprised at how well she picked things up, much quicker than soccer! 

They worked on throwing and catching rolling balls and then learned about all the bases, which way to run, how you have to touch all of them….

And then it was time to start batting practice…

She had a lot of fun and I am excited for her to try something completely new for her. We are waiting on her left handed glove to arrive that we ordered online since baseball gear is hard enough to find here let alone a kids, left handed glove! We have practice once a week and then a game once a week! Go Red Sox!

Our weekends lately

With soccer season going and the beautiful weather outside we have settled into a pretty nice weekend routine and the majority of it is outside because we know how soon it will be before it gets really hot!

Our weekends start with a lazy Friday morning and then we often take a walk or a bike ride down the path along the beach towards a coffee shop on camp and stop for ice cream and coffee before walking home and stopping at a park or two on the way. It is such a nice way for John and I to catch up, enjoy beautiful weather, the beach and start the weekend off with some great family time!

Not every weekend, but on occasion (like once a month) we have family movie night in our room. We move a TV into our room, get snacks, buy a new movie on iTunes and have movie night. The kids are allowed to sleep in our room that night however the last one they both opted to go to their rooms when it came to bedtime which was probably for the best since my baby belly takes up any extra space in the bed.

Saturday mornings are either spent relaxing around the house, working on projects like the nursery or other house stuff and sometimes heading out to do some errands. But in the afternoon it is soccer game time!

Peyton playing goalie. She has shut out two teams! 

We are loving the beautiful weather and the great family time we have here. One of the main reasons we came here was for the time that it would allow us to focus on our family and the work/life balance especially while the kids are young and we are so thankful to have that!

Baby Girl's Woodland Inspired Nursery

When we decided to not find out the gender at the beginning of this pregnancy my only request was that we plan the nursery and work towards a complete gender neutral nursery.  It was super hard for me to find something that wasn't too boyish or too girly and that I would like. I found a couple of ideas that were "box sets" from various stores but decided I wanted to do just take pieces I loved from here and there and put them together. 

So, I went to Etsy and started with finding a baby quilt that I liked and found a woodland inspired quilt with gray, yellow and an aqua color and just some fun patterns.

Purchased from Cool Spool on Etsy. 

And that was the start of a woodland inspired nursery. I found a bunch of various items and made a collage of items in Power Point to see how they worked together and really started loving the mix of modern, fun and various pieces. Thankfully I was heading home to Washington and was able to order all the items (mostly from Etsy) and bring it all back and put together a nursery that John and I love. It is exactly what I was planning in my head!

Here is the view from the door which has the dresser/changing table and then a chair that we have had but bought a new cover from Ikea to help match the room. 

Beaver Storage Caddy from 3 Sprouts
Changing pad cover from Land of Nod

The mobile above the chair was something I bought while I was in Nepal. I was just early on in my pregnancy and I wanted to bring something from that trip home for the nursery. The elephants with their trunks up symbolize good luck and good fortune and is a reminder of an amazing trip that I had and a dream come true to be able to experience that and this little girl got to be apart of that memory.

Birch Tree hooks from Vermont Branch Company on Etsy.

The dresser and changing table was from Peyton's room and since they needed a bigger dresser it worked great to move it into the nursery. I bought some hand painted wooden knobs from a shop on Etsy and then bought different prints off of Etsy and some from Ikea and then made an art wall above with the feature being a white elk head. The blue pin on the bottom left is a place holder for a white wooden letter for her name (still being narrowed down from four possible options). 

Ceramic deer head from Land of Nod

Yellow with various woodland creatures painted on wooden drawer knobs from Cool Lisa Art on Etsy.

I fell in love with this bird on the camera print I saw on Etsy. It was so fun and also represented something that is important to me. I thought it was a perfect addition. And once we found out we are having a girl, I did go a little more girly with frames and other additions. And then the "What does the fox say," print was too funny to pass up. Our kids (especially Graham) loves the song and I thought it was such a fun addition to the room to help remember fun memories of dancing and singing with the kids right now.

Purchased from Me and Wee on Etsy

What does the Fox Say? print from Backyard Daises on Etsy. 

The crib sits in this little alcove that you see as soon as you walk into the room. Putting up the vinyl trees was a tedious and long (seven hours) project but was worth it. The birdhouse light will stay there until she gets mobile and then we will have to find a new spot in the room for it so she doesn't pull it down on her. But for now it is her little forest area!

Custom Elk head crib sheet ordered from Ivie Baby on Etsy
Reversible crib skirt from Land of Nod
Bird house night light order from Modern Treetop Baby on Etsy
Vinyl birch trees ordered In An Instant Art from Etsy

And then on the other wall and near the crib is her bookcase and toy storage area. Peyton found the stuffed tree that has little birds and woodland creatures that hide inside and peak out at a local store in Bellingham and it has become the big kids favorite thing in the room. They always go in her room and play with it. 

Ordered off of Etsy from True Love Creates

Fox hamper from 3 Sprouts, currently using for toy storage
Gray storage bins from Pottery Barn Kids

Nightlight from Land of Nod

We love her nursery and are so excited to have it done and waiting for our sweet little girl. It is surreal to think that we will be bringing a new baby to our home here in Saudi and it has been sweet to see the transformation that our house here has gone through from bringing Graham as a pretty new baby (10 weeks) with nothing here and then setting up their rooms once our shipment arrived to now doing rooms over again for a new phase of our life. 

Now that the nursery is done we are onto the many other things to do to get ready for her arrival in May...

Start of Soccer Season

Just before we left for Washington Peyton started soccer practice and the soccer season. We then left for a month which meant her missing a month of practices but made it back in time for the fun part….games! Her first game she didn't make it out because of jet lag but she was ready for the second game (we have had one more since then) and did great! The team we played was a little rough but she held her own, got up when she fell and was in there going after the ball. She is tough and she holds her own against those boys! This past weeks game she was even getting in some good blocks and playing great defense! 

John is helping with coaching this year and he was amazing and went to two practices a week for a month while his kid was away to keep helping and being there for the kids! Such a good dad! We are so thankful that he has the time right now to be able to help coach and do things like this with the kids.

Graham LOVES playing soccer and kicking the ball around with me while Peyton is practicing and doesn't like the games because he just wants to play. He gets so sad that he isn't old enough! He is actually really good and has impressive ball control and handling for a three year old….he is actually better than Peyton! But as much as he would rather play at the games he is his sisters biggest fan and cheers her on and at the end of each game runs up to her, gives her a big hug and tells her she did a great job. 

What has been the best part of soccer games is watching the transformation in Peyton since last year. Soccer season last year was just before she got sick in April and we discovered she had Celiacs that summer and it was such a battle to get her to go to practice, run for even five minutes of the game. She was always complaining, saying she was exhausted and we were battling her going to games and practices which is why John was not impressed when I brought up soccer again this year. But this year….she is ready hours before practice because she is so excited about going, she works hard at practice and loves it and she runs hard during the game. She sat out only once or twice last game and not because she asked but because we had to rotate players. It is just another instance where I sing continual praises to God that she is healthy, that we knew early on her life (and even earlier in Graham's) what was causing her to be tired, weak and sick and that we have vibrant and healthy kids! So thankful!

Looking forward to a month more of games and practice!

Baby #3….What will it be?!?!?

Yes we were planning on waiting and being surprised about the gender of baby #3 however the ultrasound technician had other plans for us…and so we are thrilled to announce the news…..

We were at a friends daughter's birthday party and she had this adorable Photo Booth set up for the mustache themed bash and we got in on the fun and thought it would be a great way to announce that we are having a……….

Yes, we are having a sweet little GIRL! And we are all over the moon with excitement! We were both pretty confident that it was given how similar this pregnancy is to Peyton's and how different it is from Graham's and I also figured that since we agreed on a boys name immediately and still don't have a girls name that it would be a girl!

After the slip up at the appointment, we waited and received the ultrasound pictures on a CD and looked through them together to confirm what we had heard and spent several days just reflecting, and enjoying the little secret between John and I. And I started crafting bows, headbands, a bow holder and little onesie dresses for her! 

We then decided to share it with the kids and made them cupcakes with pink icing and put them under a bowl, we explained that when they lifted the bowl that it would reveal whether they are having a sister or a brother. They lifted it up and Peyton was overjoyed! Graham was happy to have a cupcake! 

Peyton has been asking, pleading, praying for a sister and we have worked so hard for her to understand that a healthy baby is what we were praying for and so when we told her she was overjoyed! I heard her throughout the whole night thanking God for a sister and just saying it out loud over and over. She is thrilled! Graham figured it out a couple of days later and is just excited about the baby. I did ask him for some name suggestions and in addition to the nickname "Rosie" we already have, he offered, "Human, marshmallow and rebel." Hmmm….

John and I are thrilled! We were really fine either way and fine with not finding out (the nursery is still staying gender neutral minus the addition of some bow holders and I love the nursery and wouldn't change it even if I knew earlier) but there is a sweetness to finding out. We are both so excited that Graham is our little man and we both have this special bond with him. He is also going to rock as a big (and little) brother to his sisters! And I am excited to get super girly with this one! I know from past experience that it will quickly pass and she will have her own opinions on bows and frilly things!

So….right around 100 or so more days until we meet our daughter!

24 Weeks: Baby #3

Not much to update on baby #3 this week but we are now 24 weeks! And I did realize that I actually had pictures from both previous pregnancies at 24 weeks (I skipped some weeks with Graham) so I thought it would be fun to show a belly comparison. 

In my opinion, baby #3 belly is smaller than the other two. I feel smaller and like I haven't gained as much weight but I am not sure. We don't own a scale and I haven't seen a doctor since beginning of December so I have no idea what my weight gain is. I was supposed to have a doctor appointment when I got back but they rescheduled it to February 13. We knew calling and trying to reschedule for earlier was a pointless battle so we just have to wait until next week. I figure that baby is growing, I am gaining weight, the kicks/hits are getting stronger and I have no obvious signs of complications that we are doing good. Thankfully this is #3 and I am a whole lot more relaxed about it given where we are :)

Other than baby getting much more active and stronger, not much has changed. I still feel great and have energy which is nice since we are doing potty training with Graham and need all the energy to keep up with him on that. No real cravings or food aversions, my appetite has slowed down though. I was constantly hungry for a couple of weeks and now it is more normal. Trying to make sure I am staying hydrated and drinking more water than I think I need, it is one thing that helps the cramping. I have experienced mild cramping again here and there since we have been back but I have attributed that to being back from vacation and having to do my normal routines here. It is manageable and not that bad which is the main thing.

The kids are still over the moon and ask daily how big is the baby and what is it doing or what is developing. They have been moved into their shared room (Peyton's old room) and love it. They are doing great going to sleep, respecting boundaries and love being together. We have also implemented more detailed morning and nighttime routine charts that have added responsibilities that I was doing for them before (like packing their backpacks) so that they can take on more responsibility for things that they easily can do and hopefully will help things run smoothly when baby arrives. Peyton is a big help in encouraging Graham and helping him complete the routines. 

We are all doing great and enjoying this pregnancy to the fullest! It is sure flying by!

Superbowl….Go Seahawks!!!

While the kids and I were in Washington we were able to experience the excitement of watching the Seattle Seahawks make it to the Superbowl. Peyton loved watching the games and cheering them on and is becoming a true Seahawk fan. So, Superbowl Sunday we had to cheer on our new hometown team from Saudi.

The kids wore their Seahawks gear on Sunday to school in support of their team. Peyton calls them the "Seahockeys," for some reason. 

And then the debate began of whether we should wake up to watch the game. The game started at 2:30 AM Monday morning in Saudi and we decided to do it and wake up in support of the Seahawks. I had made baked french toast the night before to throw in the oven since traditional Superbowl snack food didn't sound appealing that early in the morning. So, we got up, got our shirts on and some coffee and streamed the game live from NFL.com.

And it was so worth it!! It was also a lot of fun to hang out together and cheer them on! John and I are hoping one day to make it to some home games in Seattle and continue our support for the Seahawks!

Peyton woke up around 6:00 AM just as the fourth quarter started and was a little irritated that we didn't wake her up and that she didn't have her shirt (it was dirty from the day before), so I gave her mine and she started cheering. She asked why they said her name on the TV (for Peyton Manning) and when I explained it was a player on the other team she was less than impressed and said it was a girls name so why does he have it. She was over the moon and shouted for joy when they won and loved watching the confetti and the trophy presentation and asked to buy the Superbowl celebration package being advertised and to go to a Seahawk game. So, I am thinking for sure we need to look into a game for us three sometime!

Graham woke up around the end as well and was still sleepy and not as thrilled. And of course baby #3 was present and crazy active all day long after having coffee and french toast and maple syrup all within three hours! 

23 weeks and 4 days with Baby #3

A fun morning of celebration although John was pretty tired at work and I was worn out by the end of the day! We only wish we could be in Washington celebrating with everyone! Way to go Seahawks!