Gymnastics

This year for Riann's birthday we asked her grandparents to put a little money towards some Gymnastic classes for Riann. Each kindly helped us and we were able to put Riann into a class for a couple of months. She really seemed to enjoy it. I'm a little bummed that her class was so small but that's how the summers work around here with the track system up on campus. If we can afford it we might put her back in this winter when more kinds are out here and doing classes. I don't think a HUGE class will be good for her but one with more than one or two students would be fun.

We really liked the Madison Gymnastic Center. Their coaches are great and really energetic. Riann's coach was pregnant and made me feel guilty for all of the things I couldn't do. She was pretty awesome!! Riann loved the cheers before each station and she especially loved the bars and the foam pit. On her first day out everyone was so impressed at how strong she was and how she was able to hang and swing all on her own. She also jumped straight over to the rock wall on the other side of the foam pit in her very first class and all of her coaches loved that. She was great at almost all of the things she tried. I think she's got a good personality for stuff like this because she's never afraid to try. She's one of those kids who's more shy the second time around than she is the first.

It was a lot of fun getting out and playing with her. I liked the parent-tot class style and being out on the floor with her. We planned her classes so that the first month or so I would be able to go with her and the last set of classes Paul would be able to go with her, once Paul was done with classes. It was fun having her come home from classes with me and want to show Paul everything she was doing. Paul loved "practicing" with her letting her show him all of her "moves". Once he finally got to go to a few classes it was even better because he knew what she was doing and had a good time helping.

We got to bring in our camera a few times to class and take pictures of her during class. They aren't the best pictures because so much movement is involved but I've picked out some of the best we were able to take. Amie even came to a class to take a few pictures for us. We were lucky to have Amie around for as long as we did!!!

My little circus performer in action.

She had fun on this task but I don't think it was one of her favorites because it took a lot of work and she had to do most of it by herself.

One of her favorite activities, at gymnastics and at home...

Getting instructions on how to do the station from her coach.

Trying to apply the instructions. Sometimes we had to do extra work to keep her from cheating.

Look at that focus and determination...

Here she had to dip her foot each time she got to a foot print. It was SO cute watching her do this one. Out of all of the beam exercises this was her best. It didn't matter which beam she was on (they played around on 3 of them) she would always stop and dip regardless of what the instructions were.

One of the days Paul got to come in and help. I think Riann loved having him there.

Before starting each station they did a little cheer. Riann liked to ask them to say, "Let's go play!!!"

They were supposed to toss the hoops on the cones but Riann liked to walk up and lay them down on them.

We worked hard on this. At the end of each task they were supposed to "stick" their landing and say "Ta-Da". Most of the time Riann forgot and had to go back to the end to add it. Now when we play at home she does a good job adding it after a somersault.

She loved sitting on the edge of the foam pit and "building".

After a little building she would get brave and dive right in... This was actually a rare occasion that Amie just happened to catch. Normally it took her some coaxing to get her to jump like this. She loved to somersault in or fall in backwards but I think she was showing off for Amie.

Hanging out for the go-a-head on climbing the wall.

At the end of every class they sang a goodbye song. Riann never got into the hand motions but loved singing it with everyone.

Each of the kids got a stamp at the end of class. They could have it on their foot or hand. Riann always asked for the seahorse and to have it on her foot. It was one of her favorite things to show dad when we visited him up on campus after classes.

Out and about... Fun stuff, even in Rexburg

So far summer has been a lot of fun!! The weather has taken a while to cooperate but we've still taken advantage of ever day possible. When Amie was here helped with that a lot too. We've gotten out to celebrate the warm weather at the Splash Park, as well as Egin "lakes" - a welcome addition to the few things there are to do in Rexburg. Riann loves the sand out there!!! We've also been lucky to "house" a few horses and celebrate a few holidays. It's been a great summer and we've got to do a lot of things we've failed to particiapte in since we've lived out here because of our work schedules. It's a whole new experience this summer with Riann being the age she is. She wants to do more and be more involved. It makes things a lot more fun because now she's pushing us to do more instead of us thinking we're planning a fun adventure for her and her being too little or tired to enjoy it. I'm looking forward to many more summers like this because it's a joy watching Riann go.

Here are some highlights of our adventures...

Riann with her new sand toys out at Egin Lakes. When we decided to play out there more often we decided she needed some fun stuff to play with. She loves carrying them around.

Us enjoying a day in the sun. I love this kid!!!

We went out to play with some friends on evening and Riann got the raw end of the deal playing with two boys. She took it like a champ though.

We finally made it to the 4th of July parade this year!!! Riann was happy to "dress up" for the occasion, even if she looked a little silly. Now that I look back on it I probably shouldn't have been so cheap and actually gotten her a new shirt for the holiday... :-/

Enjoying a chocolate milk that was handed out during the parade. She can finally have chocolate now so she's been enjoying the new found treasure.

Riann's cousin Daniel came up to play and celebrate the 4th with us. We went up to Drigg's, ID to celebrate with a speech from Glenn Beck and fireworks.

Riann and I waiting for the shows to start on the 4th.

Riann checking out the horses we had for about a week. She loved going out there just to say "Hi".

Out playing with the horses. We actually miss having them around.

The city aprticipates in the summer lunch program for the kids in the area. Each day they have a lunch they provide for anyone who is at the local parks. We like to go out to play at the Splash park here in town and we often start with lunch. This was Rainn's face after she enjoyed a corn dog.

Playing in the water... It's a great way to clean off the kiddo's after they eat lunch.

When Riann is good at the Splash park she gets to ride on the carousel. It's just a dollar for a minute or so. It's a pretty good deal/reward for her. She loves paying by herself and picking out her horse.

We got to go to the Demolition Derby again this year. We went about 2 years ago and it was a lot of fun. Riann really enjoyed it even though most of it was REALLY loud. She kept saying "cars crash!!!" It's one of those "hick" things you tend to pick up after living out here but they are SO much fun. We got a really good spot and so this year was even better than the last!! I think Riann is giving the thumbs up for her approval!!

One of Riann's new favorite things is helping daddy mow the lawn. Now that we've got out mower running and she's old enough to ride she enjoys going out with him every once and a while. She even gets to drive each time and she does a great job. You can always tell which corner of the yard daddy let her do. Our only delema... She's ALWAYS asking to drive now... No matter where we go!!

The Rexburg car show

The Chevy dealership here in town always does a car show each year. The last few years I haven't been able to go with Paul because of work or various things going on. This year it was held on Father's day weekend. It's always bummed me out but this year, not knowing it was important to me, Paul set aside a few of the things he wanted to work on and asked if we could all go. I was excited he wanted to go so we jumped in the card and got moving. Before we left however, we had to all change out of our yard clothes and into things that were a little more presentable. I had been doing a little bit of laundry, mostly Riann's stuff, and as I was trying to find her something to wear she found a skirt that my dad bought her a little bit ago. This is her MOST favorite thing. It's bright pink with multi-colored ruffles and when she wears it she swings her hips so it swirls around her. I didn't know if it would be too much so I tried to talk her into something a little more simple, sorry dad, but she demanded that this was the skirt that had to be worn that day and I love it on her so the fight didn't last long. Once I found a shirt for her to wear we were out the door.

Once we got there we were surprised how interested Riann was in the cars. She did a VERY good job walking around with us and staying close. They had a bounce house set up for the kids and she played in it for a little bit but over all she was very happy to just hang out with Daddy and I, and enjoy the day. There were a lot of really cool cars there, a few fire trucks, and free food!!! Paul stole the camera a few times and ran off to take pictures of some of the cars. I thought I took a lot more pictures than I did, especially of Riann, but looking back I didn't get nearly enough. I also thought I got a few video's of her dancing, but apparently I failed at that too. They had a DJ there to keep the event festive and Riann LOVED the music. I think her skirt had a lot to do with it but she wouldn't hold our hands as we walked because it got in the way of her rocking out. I've got a short video on my cell phone and as soon as I can figure out how to get it posted on here I'll get it up. Everyone loved her skirt and it was fun walking around and having everyone do double takes, or pointing as they walked by whispering to their friends with a smile on their faces. I'm glad Riann's got such a great personality at such a young age. She is SO much fun to be around... Even on most of her cranky days. Which on a side note... She has started pointing out to me times when she thinks I'm being cranky by telling me, "Mom, you're a cranky pants!!!"

Here are a few pictures from the day. I'm sorry there aren't more. I really thought we took a lot more than we did!!!

Riann walking with Daddy. I thought this was SO cute because a friend from one of Paul's classes was over the other night and kept saying how weird it was for Paul to talk with Riann and to have a little girl. I had to laugh when I saw this because Paul really is a "guys guy" most of the time but you can tell he has such a soft spot for her and I'm grateful for the little things he does... like this...

Getting closer to the cars and getting excited!!! Riann did a VERY good job and didn't touch anything. I was really proud of her!!!

This was Paul's favorite. He had a lot that he liked but I think this type of car has a soft spot for all of the Vreeken men.

Paul really liked the paint concept on this one. I think he's been looking more intently now that he's got a car that he's working on and will have to paint soon.

Here's another Vreeken loved car...

A few of the new "classics" were there...

This was a fun car and it seemed to be there JUST for Riann.

Her "gansta" face. I'm not sure why she's making this face but it was cute. It kind of reminds me of the Pink Ladies from Grease.

My baby... She's SO cute!!!!

It ended up being a VERY fun day... and weekend!! I hope Paul had a good time. It was nice to relax with the family and spend a little time with friends through out the few days we had away from school. It made me long for the end of the semester when we get Paul's attention back :-). Right now each day we get together is the best day on earth!!!

My little girl...

I'm not a fussy mom. Most of the time I barely have time to do my own hair let alone help Riann with her's. Plus I grew up with only boys and so I don't know how to do a TON. Anything I do know, has been self taught and that's a short list. I've been trying to do fun stuff with Riann's hair lately. The other day Riann was VERY patient with me and let me pull out my curling iron to do her hair. I was able to get her to sit still for just a few moments while I got it done. Here is how it turned out...





Over all I think I did pretty good. She sat REALLY still, thanks to Nemo, so there weren't any burns. I even made sure to use a heat protector spray (for Paul's mom ;-)) so I didn't hurt her beautiful "virgin" hair. This last Sunday she let me curl it again but was a little less content through the whole process. By the time we got back from church it was all over the place so I didn't get any pictures. I have done a few things with braids, I can't believe I was able to put a braid in her hair - it's SO thin, and clips since this day but I haven't been able to capture it. She's got really long fluffy "bangs" and they are always falling in her eyes. We can't cut them because they aren't her "real" bangs, just the long hair that's more on the top of her head. And the layers just wouldn't look right. Her real bangs are just baby hairs that haven't grown too much but we can't keep the longer stuff out of her eyes so we, yes Paul's included in this - which has been SUPER cute and very fun so far, have been trying out different ways to keep her hair back. I just picked up a few more hair ties, and Paul picked out some head bands and I'm going to be playing more. I'm so glad she's patient with me because I'm hoping I can get her to do some fun stuff. I'll post more as I get better and have fun things done.

And the results are in!!!

It's a...

BOY!!!

We're not going to show you the for sure boy shot but we're pretty positive he's got the goods!!! Now we just need to decide on a name. We aren't as set on one like we were with Riann. We might not even be able to decide until we meet the little guy but I'm a little excited about that. If we are for sure about a name we'll let you know but until then... The possibilities are endless!!!

Tomorrow

Tomorrow we're going in for our 20 week (gender) ultrasound. For some reason I'm a little freaked out that we wont find out what we're having. With Riann it wasn't a question. I didn't know that couples sometimes didn't find out, because the baby wasn't turned right or some odd reason like that, until I had a few friends who experienced that. This time around I have this scary feeling that the baby just wont cooperate. I REALLY don't think we'll have an issue with it but it's still a thought that's been sitting in the back of my mind.

Originally I hoped for a girl because it would be so much easier to start over with what we already had and I would LOVE for Riann to have an "instant" friend. Then Paul told me he was hoping for a boy so I started playing with the idea of what that would be like and started to get excited. With how different this pregnancy has been I've been thinking it's a boy but as other friends who are having babies about the same time as me start to announce what they're having I start to think again it could really go either way.

I've been avoiding the thought of what we could be having because I haven't wanted to ponder on it too much. The appointment is also later in the day and I don't want to get too excited because I know how anxious and stressed out I get over things, even good things, and so I've kind of put all pregnancy thoughts on the back burner. Lately people have been asking me how far along I am and I haven't been able to tell them. I've been pretty proud of myself for not putting too much time into thinking about it but for the last few hours it's been working its way forward in my mind. I think it's because the appointment is scheduled RIGHT in the middle of Riann's nap time and it's hard to get her to go down early. She typically does okay without a nap but she was VERY restless at our last ultrasound and so I'm a little worried about her doing good at this one because of the time frame. I keep thinking maybe I'll get up early with her so she's tired earlier but that just cuts into my sleep and puts the appointment that much further out... I know I can't have it both ways but I would REALLY like to... Haha.

Anywho the more I keep typing the more I stress about what tomorrow will be like. I think I'll call it quits tonight but I'll for sure update tomorrow!!!

Little update

Sorry I'm not good at this. I planned on doing a lot of blogging while I worked but it's hard to manage my photo's from one computer to the next so I haven't been doing very well. On top of that I fear boring everyone because most of you are friends with me on facebook and were I typically update my photos there first I hate repeating them on here. I should just get over it because this is more for family and personal use than it is for friends. I need to get better at journaling our story so that my children have something fun to read. One day I'll figure out how to balance it all out but for now I think it will be a struggle on getting that all together.

(When Paul's little brother Kevin came to town we all got to try on his uniform.)

So just a few updates. Not too much is new here. Paul is still doing well in school although this semester is much harder than the last. We can't believe it's so close to being over but it's exciting that we've made it through a "year" of school already and we're one step closer to being done. I'm so proud of him for working so hard. I feel bad that he has to do it under conditions that I said I would never attend classes under (mostly being a parent) because I know how much of a struggle it would be for me but he's really doing good. I just have to remind him every once and a while that even though generals are lame they still need as much focus as the "fun" classes.

(Riann in cousin Daniel's puppy towel. She didn't want to be out of it and kept taking it off the door where it was drying so she could wear it, even after getting dressed.)

Riann has grown SO much in just the last little bit. I'm amazed at how much she's learning everyday. I'm SO grateful she's a talker, most of the time. It has been such a joy to be able to communicate with her better. The other day she made me so proud because she was able to help me help her find her cup by giving me specific instructions on where to look. It amazed me that my two year old could pick up on that so well. She really seems to love life. I wish at times I was better at keeping up with her. She LOVES to read and sing. She still struggles to remember tunes but she is great at getting the words down. Now if only we can get her to organize her ABC's and her number's we'll be in good shape.

Some of the fun things she's recently started saying are:

"Hi, I'm Riann, I'm two..." (To anyone who now tells her hello. It doesn't matter who it is.)

"Are you kidding me?! Mom, ARE YOU KIDDING ME?" (She picked this one up from me while we were driving one day. Most often I hear it after I've laid her down for her nap, before she starts to drift off to sleep.)

"I LOVE IT!!!" (This typically comes anytime food is put in front of her but if she's excited about anything that's new to her or enjoyable for her she shares her new found joy for the item by loudly exclaiming this.)

"Hey, look at me!!" (Anytime we're driving and she wants to show us what she's doing with her hands or something like that. Most often she says this when there is no one else in the car to look at her except for the driver. She also likes to do it when she thinks you should be in 'trouble' and if need be she will grab both of your cheeks and force you to look her in the eyes.)

"Where's daddy? Oh at school?!" (This is the first thing she asks before she gets out of bed in the morning... Then after asking she walks around the house checking every room to make sure I told her the truth.)

"Mommy, you okay? Tummy hurt?" (Anytime I pull a face she asks me this... I may have told her I was sick too many time on this one.)

"I DID IT!!!" (This she screams in the highest pitched voice possible. It's fun to see her light up when she really feels like she did something good.)

She loves saying and singing happy birthday so if I don't have your birthday on my calendar and you want a song email me your birth date and your phone number and we'll make sure to call.

(Me at 17 weeks, dirty and unshowered...)

As for me, I'm doing good. As most of you know we're expecting baby number two. "It" although I think it's a "He" should be coming early this November. It was a little bit of a surprise to us but good none the less. As I watch our friends add more children to their homes I'm excited and a little nervous about adding another one to ours. I know that it will all work out when it's time but it still makes me a little anxious. This time around I've felt MUCH better than I did with Riann. I'm just shy of 20 weeks with this one and although I have sick days here and there I'm relying on my anti-nausia medicine a lot less. I have yet to gain weight which helps me feel better about everything but I'm still not able to get out and excercise like I wish I could and that's been a struggle for me. With Riann I had no desire to excercise so I'm glad that I feel it lacking these days. As we get glimpses of nicer weather I get more motivated and soon I will be able to figure out how to build a workout back into my day. Now that I have a little more time this year I've committed myself to reading as many books as I can this year. This is the first time I've ever had a desire to really read and so instead of vegging in front of the TV during nap time I try to make sure I read and use my time more wisely. I'm always looking for a good book, perferably ones with big print - so that I can workout when I read - once I get back to the gym.

As for the rest of life we're taking each day as it comes. For the first time ever I'm trying not to rush through each day hoping for the day, the week, or the month to end so I can get moving onto the next thing. I haven't perfected this yet and sometimes can't wait to get to bed so that the next day can start but living in the moment, and really trying to enjoy it, has helped bring balance to life. As we grow together I enjoy ending each day with the feeling that we're better off now than we were 4 or 5 years ago. For a long time I lived in the past wishing for easier times and the joy I felt then. As that perspective has changed so have the relationships in our home and I've noticed the blessing that have come from them. We haven't perfected communication but I can honestly say this year we've gotten a LOT better at it than last year. As we see the changes coming in the future I think we'll be able to handle them better than we have in the past and the joys of life will be more readibly seen in the future.