Wow! What a whirlwind of activities we have had the past few weeks. May and June were very rainy weeks and we enjoyed every minute of it, including a BBQ in the rain! Brock was bundled up so tight in an adorable hoodie that was way too big (we didn't have a jacket to fit him, thinking, who would need a jacket in the summer, right?) and Ella and the rest of the kids rode their bikes in their rain coats. Of course, Ella was drenched by the time the evening was over, but we had a blast. A few days later, we had some great surprise visitors...the Farfans!
We were not expecting them, and they didn't get to stay long at all, but we had such a good time with the kids! We got some pictures taken of all 9 Wyckhuyse grandkids (which I still haven't seen, by the way, hint! hint!) and of course, no one could resist the opportunity to give me a hard time about the picture only being valid till January.
I just keep blaming it on Chad! Anyway, after the picture, we had ice cream, Ella, Kaylie and Brandy got their picture taken with Hello Kitty, and they spent the rest of the weekend prancing around Grandma and Grandpa Wyckhuyse's calling themselves Team Kitty and doing little cheers together. It was cute! Not too long after that, we were able to make it up to Washington, thanks to Nancy, Carl, and Pat.
We even were able to extend the trip a few extra days thanks to Loyal and Valerie. We are so lucky to have so many people that love us and want to take care of us. The weather was on and off rainy while we were there, so the swimming suits we brought stayed in our suitcases the whole time, but we still found things to do for fun. We went down to the park one day with Nancy, Cobe, Johni, and Harper where the kids fed the ducks, we got treats to eat, and we rode the carousel.
We went to three of Cobe's baseball games and enjoyed watching him play. He had some good hits too! After the games we would go over to Russ and Johni's house for some food and to visit some more...well, we always enjoyed it, but Brock and Harper struggled a bit. Brock needed to borrow a few things of Harper's for a bit, like his high chair, and his walker, but Harper wasn't so sure he liked the idea.
He tried to show us he was unhappy by pushing Brock across the kitchen...Brock on the other hand, was not at all offended, but thought it was fun! While Harper screamed in protest at his temporary replacement, Brock laughed hysterically. It was quite funny and so of course, we couldn't resist snapping some pictures.
We had lots of dinners with our Brock family and friends and Ella had fun running around with all the bulldogs and loved to feed them treats. They discovered very quickly that a good place to sit at dinner was near Ella and Brock. They gobbled up quite a bit of bread and several graham crackers that had been dropped on the floor! We went out to the cemetery to visit Ella's Mommy Kirsten's "remembering stone" and she got to choose a bouquet of flowers to leave. When we got there, we told her to just set the bouquet down, but that wasn't good enough for her. She wanted to pull the bouquet apart so that she could lay them her own way and "make it pretty."
We felt like this was an okay thing since it was coming from her heart and it was very sweet. Not too long after we got back from Washington, we had a chance to take Ella on her first camping trip. We left Brock with my parents overnight (no, I didn't cry...almost, but I didn't) and went up to Hobble Creek Canyon. Ella had a great time and she was such good helper with setting up the tent and sleeping bags. The creek ran right along our campsite and so we went down to it several times to play and stick our feet in. We did a puzzle, played
a game, cooked dinner, and of course, made s'mores! She didn't fall asleep till about 11:30 that night but was up by 6:30 the next morning, climbing in between Chad and I, jumping on us, trying to tickle-fight, and more than ready to be awake (of course, she fell asleep pretty quick on our way back to my parents though!). So we got up and had breakfast, took a few more walks, and got packed up to head back. As we were leaving, the campground manager came over to talk with us, and come to find out, there was a bear in the campground the evening before! We never saw or heard it, but we heard what turned out to be the gunshot of the manager shooting it.
Some adults tried to scare it off by yelling at it and throwing rocks at it, but it was not afraid and started to charge at the campground manager. So, unfortunately, he had no choice. But fortunately for us, we knew nothing about it! All in all, we enjoyed our trip and we will try to do it again next year. I'm not sure if we'll take Brock on that one either, I guess we'll just have to wait and see. So maybe now, you're wondering why I choose the title that I did for this post. If you take a look at the Ella-isms, you won't wonder as much anymore. All of a sudden, our Ella has turned into this teeny-bopper!
She's been watching all of these "big-girl" movies like Princess Protection Program and Princess Diaries, she can't get enough of Hannah Montanna or the Jonas Brothers. She has a Hannah Montanna flashlight, jammies, and vitamins. Of course we draw the line there and refuse to buy her anything Jonas Brothers, especially clothes. Sorry, I'm just not ready for my five-year-old to be wearing a boyband t-shirt! That didn't stop her from begging and she even told me that she would even put back the pony shirt she had already picked out if she could just have the Jonas Brothers one.
Still, the answer was no, and as we walked away, she couldn't help but grab the bottom of the shirt and give it a kiss. One word: Ahhhhhhhhhhhh! We were slightly horrified. And of course, every day we get at least a taste (and sometimes a feast) of the good ol' Ella attitude. You know, hands on hips, rolling eyes, and disghusted sigh followed by a "Daaaaaaaaad!" or "Moooooooooom!" Brock is growing too of course and just this week he showed us that he can clap his hands and give high fives! He is very proud of himself and we are proud of him too!
Ella just adores him and almost always cries that she doesn't want Brock to take a nap. She wants him to stay up so that she can play with him instead. They are our joy, day after day and can't wait for the love in our family to grow with the addition of the next one. Speaking of, my belly is growing, although it's still hard for people to tell. Those darn 20 lbs Brock left me with are not being very kind. The things we do for our children! I have another appointment in about a week and a half, and after that one, we will have a date for when we will find out if it's a boy or a girl. We will be sure to let everyone know as soon as we do!
Wow! What a whirlwind of activities we have had the past few weeks. May and June were very rainy weeks and we enjoyed every minute of it, including a BBQ in the rain! Brock was bundled up so tight in an adorable hoodie that was way too big (we didn't have a jacket to fit him, thinking, who would need a jacket in the summer, right?) and Ella and the rest of the kids rode their bikes in their rain coats. Of course, Ella was drenched by the time the evening was over, but we had a blast. A few days later, we had some great surprise visitors...the Farfans! 
We were not expecting them, and they didn't get to stay long at all, but we had such a good time with the kids! We got some pictures taken of all 9 Wyckhuyse grandkids (which I still haven't seen, by the way, hint! hint!) and of course, no one could resist the opportunity to give me a hard time about the picture only being valid till January. 
I just keep blaming it on Chad! Anyway, after the picture, we had ice cream, Ella, Kaylie and Brandy got their picture taken with Hello Kitty, and they spent the rest of the weekend prancing around Grandma and Grandpa Wyckhuyse's calling themselves Team Kitty and doing little cheers together. It was cute! Not too long after that, we were able to make it up to Washington, thanks to Nancy, Carl, and Pat. 
We even were able to extend the trip a few extra days thanks to Loyal and Valerie. We are so lucky to have so many people that love us and want to take care of us. The weather was on and off rainy while we were there, so the swimming suits we brought stayed in our suitcases the whole time, but we still found things to do for fun. We went down to the park one day with Nancy, Cobe, Johni, and Harper where the kids fed the ducks, we got treats to eat, and we rode the carousel. 
We went to three of Cobe's baseball games and enjoyed watching him play. He had some good hits too! After the games we would go over to Russ and Johni's house for some food and to visit some more...well, we always enjoyed it, but Brock and Harper struggled a bit. Brock needed to borrow a few things of Harper's for a bit, like his high chair, and his walker, but Harper wasn't so sure he liked the idea. 
He tried to show us he was unhappy by pushing Brock across the kitchen...Brock on the other hand, was not at all offended, but thought it was fun! While Harper screamed in protest at his temporary replacement, Brock laughed hysterically. It was quite funny and so of course, we couldn't resist snapping some pictures. 
We had lots of dinners with our Brock family and friends and Ella had fun running around with all the bulldogs and loved to feed them treats. They discovered very quickly that a good place to sit at dinner was near Ella and Brock. They gobbled up quite a bit of bread and several graham crackers that had been dropped on the floor! We went out to the cemetery to visit Ella's Mommy Kirsten's "remembering stone" and she got to choose a bouquet of flowers to leave. When we got there, we told her to just set the bouquet down, but that wasn't good enough for her. She wanted to pull the bouquet apart so that she could lay them her own way and "make it pretty." 
We felt like this was an okay thing since it was coming from her heart and it was very sweet. Not too long after we got back from Washington, we had a chance to take Ella on her first camping trip. We left Brock with my parents overnight (no, I didn't cry...almost, but I didn't) and went up to Hobble Creek Canyon. Ella had a great time and she was such good helper with setting up the tent and sleeping bags. The creek ran right along our campsite and so we went down to it several times to play and stick our feet in. We did a puzzle, played 
a game, cooked dinner, and of course, made s'mores! She didn't fall asleep till about 11:30 that night but was up by 6:30 the next morning, climbing in between Chad and I, jumping on us, trying to tickle-fight, and more than ready to be awake (of course, she fell asleep pretty quick on our way back to my parents though!). So we got up and had breakfast, took a few more walks, and got packed up to head back. As we were leaving, the campground manager came over to talk with us, and come to find out, there was a bear in the campground the evening before! We never saw or heard it, but we heard what turned out to be the gunshot of the manager shooting it. 
Some adults tried to scare it off by yelling at it and throwing rocks at it, but it was not afraid and started to charge at the campground manager. So, unfortunately, he had no choice. But fortunately for us, we knew nothing about it! All in all, we enjoyed our trip and we will try to do it again next year. I'm not sure if we'll take Brock on that one either, I guess we'll just have to wait and see. So maybe now, you're wondering why I choose the title that I did for this post. If you take a look at the Ella-isms, you won't wonder as much anymore. All of a sudden, our Ella has turned into this teeny-bopper! 
She's been watching all of these "big-girl" movies like Princess Protection Program and Princess Diaries, she can't get enough of Hannah Montanna or the Jonas Brothers. She has a Hannah Montanna flashlight, jammies, and vitamins. Of course we draw the line there and refuse to buy her anything Jonas Brothers, especially clothes. Sorry, I'm just not ready for my five-year-old to be wearing a boyband t-shirt! That didn't stop her from begging and she even told me that she would even put back the pony shirt she had already picked out if she could just have the Jonas Brothers one. 
Still, the answer was no, and as we walked away, she couldn't help but grab the bottom of the shirt and give it a kiss. One word: Ahhhhhhhhhhhh! We were slightly horrified. And of course, every day we get at least a taste (and sometimes a feast) of the good ol' Ella attitude. You know, hands on hips, rolling eyes, and disghusted sigh followed by a "Daaaaaaaaad!" or "Moooooooooom!" Brock is growing too of course and just this week he showed us that he can clap his hands and give high fives! He is very proud of himself and we are proud of him too! 
Ella just adores him and almost always cries that she doesn't want Brock to take a nap. She wants him to stay up so that she can play with him instead. They are our joy, day after day and can't wait for the love in our family to grow with the addition of the next one. Speaking of, my belly is growing, although it's still hard for people to tell. Those darn 20 lbs Brock left me with are not being very kind. The things we do for our children! I have another appointment in about a week and a half, and after that one, we will have a date for when we will find out if it's a boy or a girl. We will be sure to let everyone know as soon as we do!
