A trip to see Santa

Today we took our annual trip to see Santa at Valley Creek Mall in Woodbury. Unfortunately, people are catching on to my little mall Santa. This year for the first time, there was a line! It was quite busy even though we were still there pretty early. I think that the line might be caused by the fact that they were going to have live reindeer at the mall, but not for over another forty minutes. Oh well. We still got some wonderful pictures of Sophia with Santa. She told Santa that she wanted books and a new teddy bear. Hopefully Santa will make sure her wishes come true.

Baby Shower

Two weeks ago my closest friends came over to my parents house for a baby shower. The shower was hosted by my best friend Becca. We had such a wonderful time! She did an excellent job making all of the decorations and getting the theme of elephants with yellow and gray to match.

We had brunch and played some games and then opened presents. It was such a good time! The baby got so many great gifts and there was even a mommy gift bag too!

This is one of my favorite my outfits. I had a harder time registering this time with not knowing the gender of the baby. It was still so much fun to pick items out as everything is so different than it was five years ago. I also got to bring Sophia along when I registered which made it even more fun. All in all, this was such a wonderful day and I am so incredibly blessed to have such great friends!

Been a while

The busy schedule we lead every day has clearly gotten the best of me. I haven't blogged in a while and so much has happened since August. Sophia started Kindergarten and just loves it. She comes home with something new to tell us about every day. Hal got a new job and is also loving the different projects to work on. He is now focusing on lint roller tape and more of the home care products and not on blue tape. He also got a new car in preparation for the baby and the fact that the Mazda was almost nine years old. I am still working up a storm at school and volunteering with different things at church. I am 30 weeks pregnant now and enjoying every single second of it. I had to go through the big four hour glucose test, but passed and am very thankful. I am getting excited with Halloween right around the corner. We had quite a bit of family fun over MEA. Today we made our annual trip to the apple orchard. The weather was just perfect and so were the caramel apples in the end.

A long weekend with mom

This weekend Sophia and I are spending together. Every year Hal goes on a boys trip to visit one of two friends. So far we have been nothing but busy since he left. Last night we went out to dinner after I got done with work and then came home to get off to bed. Today we went to the state fair with my parents. We had a great time. We saw pretty much everything that the fair has to offer. We tried a couple of new foods. One of my gluten free finds was a spicy risotto popper. Let me tell ya they weren't kidding about the spice! Sophia went on several rides and she was quite the trooper. We spent almost eight hours at the fair walking around. We only took one minor sitting break, otherwise we walked a ton. Once we got home we were all worn out. Sophia slept the whole ride home and we came home to relax a bit and clean up the house. It is so peaceful right now to have the house almost completely to myself. Only being able to hear myself typing and the tick of the clock are somewhat refreshing. Tomorrow Sophia will have a friend over to play. Then I'm not sure what the rest of the day will hold. We need to make a trip to the farmer's market at some point. Not sure when we will get there, but the veggies are calling my name. In other news....this baby has been quite active. Wednesday night into the day on Thursday was crazy for movement. Since the my little pumpkin has been quite content with not as much kicking. It's probably because we have sat down. Here's to a great long weekend with just the girls

Half way there

I can hardly believe that I am already half done with this pregnancy. The time has just flown by. I'm pretty sure it has something to do with actually being home quite a bit with summer. I remember it not going by fast enough to meet Sophia when she was born. Now I am just trying to savor each day of this pregnancy. This baby has been quite the kicker lately. It's funny though as every time I make Hal or Sophia rush over to feel the baby kick, the little stinker stops. The baby has been much more active though this week. Maybe this child knows that it is also half way done and ready to meet the family! We are pretty much prepped and ready to go for this baby. It's nice not rushing around trying to buy stuff that we need. I'm sure we will need to do a Target run a couple of days after, but for right now we really have all of the essentials. I'm starting to worry though about the little things like my first born. I want her to be as happy as possible with this new transition. I'm also worrying about starting school again and how hard it will be on my body. We have been sleeping in quite a bit and the reality will kick back in, in just a few short days. For now, I will savor my last weekend of sleeping in and the freedom to do what I want with Sophia!

Summer is flying by......

I can hardly believe the summer has flown by so quickly. It feels like just yesterday we spent the week at VBS and then we were off to Dan and Jenny's cabin for the weekend. I can't complain at all. This summer has been a great one! This is however the last summer of being a family of three. Next summer will be a complete change. We will be back to the two nap house. I keep asking my friends with young babies how long they sleep and I still can't get over it. We have been doing quite a bit of biking together as a family so next summer it will just be with one more small person. Until then, we have a couple of big events coming up to get us through the rest of the summer. Most of you who know me understand that my life isn't complete without the great Minnesota get-together. Yes, I am talking about the State Fair. We have already set the dates and we will attend for the first time a week from today. This year will be completely different.....no rides and eating gluten free. I'm sure that I will get by just fine! How can you not have fun at the fair??!! We are also planning on going to Como Zoo and the American Girl Cafe all before we head back to school. I think once I get my Cup and Cone malt or shake I will also feel like I can head back to school knowing that Sophia and I have accomplished everything on our list of summer to-dos. Tonight is date night and I am looking forward to a night out with my wonderful husband. The weather is cool and it will be a great night to sit outside and have a non-alcoholic drink. Here's to Friday!

A family kind of week

This past week my brother and his girlfriend Carly came home. It was so nice to have them home and the weather was quite perfect. Only a spotty shower here and there, but nothing to ruin our plans. The highlights from the week were swimming, family dinners, and going to the MN Twins game. We all had such a wonderful week. We were sad to see them leave today, but are thrilled that they will hopefully be home for the birth of the baby at Christmas. Now if this baby would just cooperate the right way....... Now it's back to reality this week. My laundry is piling up, I need to get to the store, we have to start back-to-school shopping and then there is always gymnastics and dance. The summer seems as though it flew by. I am looking forward to the weeks ahead and will cherish every moment in the sun with my family. I am incredibly blessed!

We're going to the zoo.......

Last weekend despite the heat and the sun, we had a perfect day trip to the MN Zoo as a family. Sophia and I got up bright and early Friday morning to go to the library to get the museum pass. This pass allowed both Hal and I to be free at the zoo so we saved $36. It was such a great treat!! We had a wonderful time exploring the zoo grounds, checking out the animals, and having our version of a picnic lunch in front of the horned deer.

Here are Sophia and Hal enjoying the beginning part of the zoo. One of Sophia's favorite animals and mine as well at the zoo is the Prarie Dogs. I think that they are incredibly funny and also very curious. Sophia has always loved checking them out and trying to call to the "baby" ones to see if they will follow her.

Ever since the penguins have arrived to the zoo last season it has always been a challenge to see them. I feel like they are in such a small area and there is always SO many people in that tiny area. Here's the best picture I got of her with the penguins.

After such a fun day at the zoo we were all exhausted and worn out from all of the walking and sun so we decided to head home. What a great family fun day we had!

It's Official!!

Sophia is going to be a big sister in December! We are very excited and are looking forward to the arrival of our new little LaFleur. Summer has been going by fast so far. Sophia has been busy with dance and gymnastics. She is loving both of them. We also went to a cabin for a couple of days and spent some time with friends. We are gearing up for the fourth of July and all that is to come this month. Should be another great month!

Happy 5th Birthday Sophia

It feels like just yesterday I was holding the tiniest baby in my arms. Sophia Belle LaFleur was born May 22nd 2007 weighing in at a whopping 6 pounds 4 ounces. Not bad for being overdue and trying to come early at 30 weeks. Over the last five years we have had more adventures with Sophia than I can count. Every small milestone from learning to walk, learning to talk, starting dance, starting gymnastics, being in the swimming pool, our first trip to Disney World and the list goes on. I cherish each and every day of being a mom. Sophia has been one of the greatest gifts to me. Now she is our big girl. Doing dance and gymnastics, almost ready for Kindergarten, constantly singing songs and performing, as well as putting together some pretty tough Legos. I will continue to look at each and every day as a new start and a new chance to make memories with my baby girl. Happy Birthday Princess! We love you!

Ultrasound Picture of Sophia

Welcome to the world Sophia!

Sophia's 5th Birthday

Graduation Day

I can hardly believe that in just a couple of short weeks Sophia will be graduating from Pre-Kindergarten and enter Kindergarten in the fall. She has had such an amazing school year at Stepping Stones. She just absolutely adores her teacher Ms. Sarah. She looks forward to all of the learning and fun each day. I have noticed a change in her recently. She's not my baby anymore. She's officially a big girl! On top of that she will turn five later this month. It is hard to believe that five years ago she was just this tiny little thing. She has grown into such a lovely little lady. The actual graduation is on June 5th. I can hardly wait to tear up seeing her in her little cap and gown. Here's a preview of the big day.

Special Sunday

Yesterday at church we experienced a very special Sunday as a family. Sophia was presented with her very own Spark Bible. She could barely wait and was eager and ready to go when she got up. She put on a dress that she picked out and then did a twirl. It was quite adorable.

I reminded her that when she is up front, everyone will be able to see her so she should smile and be a good listener. They did the presentation toward the beginning of the service which was a good thing, but before they did, we had a palm parade. Due to the fact that it was Palm Sunday they told the kids about how people shared their palms and made a path for Jesus. So they gave each child two palms (one to share) and we paraded around the church.

When the presentation happened it was so adorable to see all of their eager and excited little faces. The best part is that they were gift wrapped.

Sophia has been showing EVERYONE her bible. She is so incredibly proud and we are too! Here are a couple of pictures from the day:

Working on Writing

Lately we have had several occasions where Sophia has had to as we teachers call it, "Work on Writing". I know....a silly catch phrase from my reading curriculum Daily 5. Her writing continues to progress. I am amazed by the amount of time she is willing to take sometimes writing her name or words she wants to spell.

She had two birthdays in one week at school and she decided she wanted to make cards for both of them. One was her teacher's birthday and the other a friend Harrison in her class.

I took a picture of the card she made for Harrison because, it was just so sweet. Check it out below:

Living Life Gluten Free

So after working through many years of horrible stomach problems, I had two friends and my trainer suggest that maybe I should get rid of the gluten in my diet. Low and behold......
IT WORKED!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have been gluten free for a little over two weeks. The change in my body is an amazing one. I am actually stomach problem free. It has taken a bit of getting used to. We have worked together as a family to do quite a bit of research regarding brands I can have and can't. We have modified and adapted some recipes, but so far so good. It is quite amazing at the amount of food out there. I have gotten on a celiac support discussion board to keep updated. I have also found some new blogs to follow as well as connected with several friends through facebook. The support has been incredible.

We made our first gluten free pizza last night and it was really good. I also made my first batch of gluten free brownies this weekend. Later this week or this weekend, I am hoping to get to Burnsville and Eagan to hit up two highly recommended gluten free shopping places for groceries.

So even a little wheat can't stop me....next up gluten free cake pops. Yep my baking will never end.

Sophia's First Manicure

On New Years Eve we decided it was time for the girls to get pretty. This involved Sophia and I get manicures together. She had such a wonderful time at the nail salon and all of the people thought she was just about as cute as ever. Ryan's girlfriend Carly even came with us. After we got done, Sophia was left with bubble gum pink nails with silver sparkles on top. She was a pro! When we were leaving she asked me if we could come back again. I told her maybe for her birthday. She said that next time she wanted to get a pedicure and manicure. What a girly girl.