What Do WE Want...

SHORT STORY: We both want a girl

For those who want to know why or are bored and need a good blog to read.... here is our reasoning...

We have recently been asked a lot "What do you guys want?" as far as the sex of our second little one is concerned. I thought I had put it on the blog, but maybe I wasn't as detailed on the blog as I was in my own mind. So for everyone out there wondering... first and foremost we just want a healthy little baby! The sex is not the most important, but is probably one of the funnest parts of the pregnancy process. As I told my friend today, I'm the type who wants the pregnancy test to say "positive" and a second slot with the sex listed right next to it. It feels like an eternity waiting for friends to find out, with Ryder last time, and of course this time as well. Derrik doesn't want to know the sex. He thinks finding out at birth would be really cool. 1. He knows i'd probably divorce him if he made me wait (just kidding... kind of) and 2. I think he just says this to make me crazy and truly is excited for our appointment! Derrik likes to pretend nothing like that gets him excited... he's cool like that :)

Before Derrik and I faced the true reality of having a child and lived in a fantasy world, Derrik wanted lots of children. He won't admit to this now because I think the reality has altered his opinion so much. I was never set on a number, but knew I wanted more then one and probably no more then four (four being extreme!). I didn't care what order the sexes of our children came in, but wanted at least one girl. I didn't feel the need to have a little boy, but would have been thrilled and obviously am with Ryder! Derrik could care less about having a girl, and wanted a baseball team. Luckily we don't get to pick the sex!

Derrik and I can agree on one thing... All our children will be close in age. For those that don't know us well, I come from a family with me being the oldest (almost 26), a brother who is 24, and two sisters who are 12 and almost 11. Derrik comes from a family where he is the oldest as well at 25, he has a brother who is 22 (23? Sorry Tommy!), and two little brothers who are 6 (? on age again... close to six.. maybe 7... first grade) and a 4 year old. So we both have HUGE age gaps in our family! We both love our younger siblings with all our heart, wouldn't change a thing about our situation, BUT (a BIGGGG BUT) also know that we don't want to parent in two rounds. Both of our mother's love it and made crazy talk of having more after both of their 4th children, but we don't think we are cut out for it.

Soooooo.... What do we want? I guess i've only told you what we don't want :) Getting to the point... I would love if the 2nd baby was a GIRL. I'm not set on being done with kids, but would be bummed if the 2nd wasn't a girl, and then the 3rd wasn't a girl. (Side note... my in-laws would be equally bummed considering their 1st,2nd,3rd, and 4th kids were all boys, and now they have 1 boy grandchild). I love Ryder and love boys, but I want that mother/daughter relationship. I want what my mom and I have. I want a best friend. I want to plan weddings. I want to buy pretty bows and dresses. I want to talk boys. I want someone to go shopping with. Get it? So I just ask for one girl... just one, but we'll see. Maybe God has bigger plans for me! PLUS... this is what I WANT to have. I am still convinced #2 IS a boy.

Derrik would also like a girl. Pretty much because he told me if #2 is a girl we are done having kids. He's pretty firm in this decision, and I pretty much agreed simply because I want a girl. Two seems nice.... a boy and a girl. Do I think I could ever say "that's it, we're done, two is the limit" NO definitely not, but Derrik says we are definitley done if #2 is a girl. He is perfectly happy (and probably would prefer) that #2 would be a boy, but knows that if #2 is a boy that the pressure will be on for #3. I guess if #2 is a girl you'll have to keep reading for a few years to see who really wears the pants in this family. For all I know two could give me a run for my money, and i'll never think I want another baby ever again.

So there is a our opinion for those that have been wondering... three more weeks until we get our answer...

P.S.... It's so totally a boy!

Doctor's Appointment

We had our first doctors appointment today. It went good. We liked the office. It is a lot like the place I use to go to back in Fort Myers and like the place we went to in Chattanooga where Ryder was born. It's a bigger place, has quite a few doctors, and the nurses were all super friendly. I had to become a patient of one of the male doctors since their female doctors were booked super far out. I am not against male doctors, but have just had bad experiences with two of them in the past. I decided to try him out since I read great things about this place. He was a nice doctor, answers all of my questions, didn't make me uncomfortable, but just sort of lacked a personality. My doctor from back home and the one who delivered Ryder made you feel like their best friend when they came in the room, but I guess you just can't find that everywhere.

Anyhow... they said everything looked great, and suggested we schedule my next apointment the day before we leave for Pennsylvania. He REALLY won me over when he also suggested getting our 20 week ultrasound done before we leave at 16 weeks!!!! This means we should be able to find out the sex the day before we leave for the holidays. I am soo excited... three weeks from today! He said if they can't get all the measurements they need then we'll just repeat it when we get back in town. Three more weeks to get your guesses in for a boy or girl!

Baby Lutz #2 Update: Week 13

How Far Along: 13 Weeks

Size of Baby: Three inches long

Fruit Size (According to my e-mail from BabyCenter.com): Apparently the baby is not always compared to a fruit because this week they compared the size to a medium shrimp... kind of weird.

Total Weight Gain: 1 pound.... Let the weight gain begin

Maternity Clothes: I put on a pair of maternity jeans this weekend for about five minutes and changed out of them. They are just too uncomfortable to start with already.

Gender: We leave for Pennsylvania at 16 weeks (most doctors will tell you at your 20 week appointment.. we are gone until 24-25 weeks). I am going to try my hardest to get the doctor to see us before we go and do an ultrasound. Two of my friends that are pregnant now found out with their doctors at 16 week so we'll see!!! Pray for a nice doctor :)

Movement: Nope

Food Cravings: Chicken salad... yum! (that was from last week... and now i'm craving it. I might have to go make some!)

What I Miss: Not much right now... feeling much better!

Labor Signs: (no comment until third trimester or so)

Sleep: Great, but am having some of the craziest dreams. No weird baby ones yet, but just weird in general.

How’s Ryder Handling It: I think it's a weird concept for him to grasp. Sometimes the baby is this thing we talk about that lives in Mommy's belly, we see at the doctor, and is a weird black and white picture. Then other times the baby is this little tiny human he sees when we visit Miss Tricia's house and the daycare babies are there. I think he gets it for two reasons: 1. I was looking at Heather's 3D ultrasounds of Nash she had done today and Ryder jumped up to look and started saying "baby", and 2. Today while baby Mady was laying on her belly at Tricia's house Ryder got down on his belly to play with her. I asked him if she was a girl and he called her a sister.... so cute!

What is the same/different as the last time: Back to feeling the same again. Right now I am itching like crazy which I heard can be a sign of pregnancy. I never had that with Ryder.

Symptoms: Itching, Nausea (if not on meds), breaking out like crazy, sleepy, hip pain... the doctor is going to love me tomorrow :)

Best Moment This Week: As far as baby is concerned... getting to see the little ones pictures on our fridge every time I walked past.

What I Am Looking Forward To: Our 1st official appointment with the doctor tomorrow! It's an hour appointment of paperwork and then an appointment with the doctor. We are shipping Ryder off to Tricia's so Derrik and I can pay attention and make sure we like the doctor. I'll give an update on our appointment tomorrow if there is anything to really update on.

Teething... Really?!

See the happy boy in this picture?.... Not so happy anymore! This weekend Derrik and I noticed he was constantly chewing on his fingers. It was non-stop, and we kept telling him to get his fingers out of his mouth. I've caught him chewing on things around the house that I haven't had to worry about him putting in his mouth for probably a year. We are past that stage in his life, and don't have to stress over little toys or anything. Later in the weekend he started having awful diarrhea diapers. Sunday also started the crankiness... he couldn't do anything without crying, throwing a tantrum, getting extremely frustrated, or screaming. Need I mention that he hasn't been sleeping through the night, is waking up screaming, and completely boycotted his nap yesterday! Late yesterday, and especially today, I've 100% decided that he is teething. He has pretty much every symptom right? I started him on the Tylonel, but go figure the teething tablets I (and most of my friends) swore by when he was younger were recalled yesterday!!! Seriously?!

Come on 2nd molars.... show your face! You're making us crazy!!!

I'm so glad we are dealing with this now, and hopefully are past it when we travel in a couple weeks!!!

Also... after being very frustrated with Ryder yesterday and probably not being the nicest Mommy in the world I decided to watch Oprah after I put him to bed. Derrik was at a football meeting, and I heard it was a good episode (as in a tear jerker). It was about parents who lost their three children five and under in a car accident. Of course it made me cry because it was a long day, and all I wanted to do after watching it was scoop Ryder up out of his bed and tell him I loved him. Sometimes a good dose of reality that life isn't that bad is good for you :)

On a side note: I got a call from the lab we had our ultrasound done at last week, and all of the results came back great. Our odds after the measurements and bloodwork they did went from about 1 in 1,500 to about 1 in 10,000 that our little one could have Down Syndrome or Tay-Sachs once born. Love the great news :)

Babies and Bellies

Living the lifestyle we live it becomes very hard to keep or make friends. You never know when you are getting back home to see the ones you have, may never see the baseball ones again when trades or moves happen, and making friend... who wants to make friends with someone who is always talking about moving. Lucky for me though I do have an amazing group of girls I am so glad to call my best friends. They are always only a phone call away, cherish the sweet times we do have together, and almost always are understanding of our crazy lifestyle.

Lately I find myself constantly talking babies with pretty much all of them. I feel like all my girlfriends either have new babies, are waiting on the arrival of a baby, or are hoping to see those two sweet lines on a pregnancy test sometime in the near future. I can honestly say as a little girl I dreamed of the days I could talk with my girlfriends for hours on end about babies. Growing up was fun, but I always looked forward to lots of babies, baby bellies, play dates, and adventures with kids. I known I was always meant to be a mom, and couldn't wait for my friends to be either.

Right now at this current moment four of my best friends are expecting little ones! FOUR!!! Is it baby season or what?! These aren't just four friends or acquaintances... these are four of my best friends! I am beyond excited to meet each and every one of these littles ones in the coming year.

Brit: 36 Weeks

Baby Zander

Let me tell you about the smile I got across my face last spring training when I found out one of the baseball wives was FINALLY pregnant. There are so many of us girls on the team, they were all newlyweds, and NONE of them were getting pregnant. I was get very frustrated at them (and they knew it!). Baby Zander came as a complete shock to his Mommy and Daddy, but a wonderful shock. Brit has handled this pregnancy SO amazing! I can't wait to get that text in a couple weeks of Zander's sweet little face, and really can't wait for their arrival out here in Arizona at spring training so I can get my hands on him!!!

Heather: 30 Weeks

Baby Nash

I can't even begin to describe to you the tears that were shed and the prayers that were said over this baby. Years (it is crazy to me that much time passed) of long talks, high hopes, trying to keep confidence, negative tests, more pep talks, infertility, holidays passing, losing hope, and finally prayers answered! Heather wanted this baby so bad, but between her awful work schedule, Chris's baseball schedule, and irregular cycles the chances began to look dimmer and dimmer. Last off season I literally spent hours each week talking with Heather though her fertility treatments trying to keep her hopes up, making sure she was ok when she would get more bad news, waking up at night from bad dreams over the situation, and was soo bummed for her when another baseball season crept up way too soon and hope was lost for yet another full baseball season.

Amazing story... Derrik and I had to stay at their house at the end of spring training (long story). Heather was flying out and had one last afternoon with Chris before an extended period of time apart due to the start of baseball season and her work schedule. She thought it was the right "time" and asked if I could leave the house with Ryder. We did, and without any help from any meds or doctors what-so-ever Baby Nash was conceived!!! I always assumed when I found out Heather was pregnant i'd be very emotional after all she had gone through. She called me late one night, I answered the phone, and she simply said "I'm pregnant". I honestly think I showed no emotion because I was completely shocked!!!

We can't wait to meet you Baby Nash! It's been a long time waiting for you grand entrance!!!

Tricia: 29 Weeks
Baby Logen

Tricia's pregnancy with baby Logen has been one of the funnest for me because I got to find out she was pregnant in person and have watched Baby Logen grow throughout this entire pregnancy. I get so excited whenever Tricia comes back home when I'm watching the kids and has new ultrasound pictures of the little one. Page is going to be such a great BIG sister!!! I am slightly bummed that Tricia will have baby Logen while we are gone for the holidays, but you can bet we will be going to visit as soon as we get back :)

Amanda: 10-11ish Weeks

The biggest shocker out of my pregnant friends.... that's for sure! Amanda and I were due about four weeks apart (her being due first) when we were pregnant with Sophia and Ryder. Due to Ryder's early arrival they are exactly three weeks apart. When I found out I was pregnant it was just after leaving Florida, and spending some amazing quality time with Amanda and Sophia. I'll admit that there was a part of me thinking "I wish I could go through this with Amanda again", but I let it go because they weren't even trying so it was totally not happening. So I thought! Within less then a week of me finding out I was pregnant I got the news from Amanda that she was expecting as well!!! I am SOOO excited. She does not have an exact due date yet, but it looks as if we'll be about three weeks apart this time as well (me being due first this time). Amanda and I were great friends growing up, but had kind of lost touch over the years. We got really close again when we found out we were pregnant and due so close together. The fact that after all those years growing up we were due within a month of each other, and now two years later we are due within a couple weeks of each other again is amazing! Amanda and I e-mail back and forth almost daily, and it's so fun talking with her about what we are going through pretty much at the same time once again. It'll be a long six-seven months together finishing growing these babies!

I can not wait to meet Zander, Nash, Logen, and Baby Maguire!!! I know the sex of three of the five babies (including ours in the five), and all three are boys. It seems to be the year of the baby, and especially the year of the boy... hoping to break tradition! HAHA

(Note: When I spell checked my post none of the babies name were spelt "correctly"... Obviously my friends like unique)

Guessing Time!!!

After stating that I was like 90% sure I was convinced we were having a boy after our ultrasound this week, I was shocked how many friends and family are still insistant that I'm having a girl. I know i'm not an ultrasound tech and if the lady could tell she would have gladly told us, but I was just stating what I think I saw.

I put up a blog poll at the top right hand corner of the blog so friends and family can start guessing what the sex of our newest little baby is going to be. For those people who don't understand the computer it is SOOO simple! Just click what you think (Boy or Girl)and then click VOTE. It will take you to a screen that will show you the results. I know it won't let you vote more then once (which I don't want), but I tried to vote for both Ryder and I and it wouldn't let me. So if you want to see the results after you voted at a later date just click the "View Results" button and it will show you.

As for Ryder's vote... We always ask him if he wants a brother or sister. We either get no response, he says "baby", or he says "sister". We never get a "brother" response. So count his vote down as a girl!

What We're Up To

We haven't really been up to much, but we've been up to a whole lot.... ever feel like that? We've been busy with life... grocery shopping, changing diapers, playing with Ryder, work, being pregnant (who know that was so exhausting)... ya know... the stuff no one really cares for you to put in writing or blog about. We very rarely get that "down time" in life when we settle into a routine, nothing is going on but normal life, and honestly, we both agree it's super boring! As much as we complain about moving for baseball, rehab, the constant unknown.... the basic every day life of knowing nothing is going to happen but work, cooking dinner, and a little tv is b-o-r-i-n-g! Luckily in four weeks from today we leave for Pennsylvania for Thanksgiving!!! WooHoo... tickets are booked, and we couldn't be more excited. We are so excited to see family that we haven't seen in a year.

Watching football on the computer with Daddy

We are pretty much doing what we did last year as far as travel. We'll be in Pennsylvania for ten days. Derrik will then fly back to Arizona for a couple weeks of rehab before Christmas break starts (he will then meet up with us), and Ryder and I will head on to my parents house for about a month. It doesn't make sense to fly back in between for Ryder and I because it's just more money on plane tickets. Of course we will miss Derrik, as always, but unfortunatley with our life style a couple weeks apart has gotten bareable since we've had to do it so much. We just push through each day, start a countdown, and get super excited when we are together again!

CHEEEEEESSEEEE!

For right now though we'll just stay busy with our routine. Derrik has been ridiculously busy with football officiating. It is such a blessing that his schedule is so busy due to the extra cash and experience Derrik gets. He insists he'll be officiating NFL games one day. He is gone about 4-5 nights a week with it, and we miss him!!! I picked up a side job nannying for a family. Minus one weekend a month that I babysit a couple hours for them, I pretty much just drive their daughter from school to her after school activities. It's worked out great for us and the family I think. It's nice extra cash, and doesn't mess up our schedule with Ryder all too much.

Trying to see the Phillies game from the kitchen table

I have nothing else to say to separate the rest of these pictures.... so just enjoy the rest :)

Ryder thought Grammy sent him a present when she sent my maternity clothes.

He loved this box!!!
Eating ice cream on a date with Mommy to the mall

Happy Friday!!!

Baby Lutz #2 Update: Week 12

How Far Along: 12 Weeks

Size of Baby: About two inches long (our ultrasound today says 9cm)

Fruit Size (According to my e-mail from BabyCenter.com): A lime

Total Weight Gain: 0 Pounds... I was up 1 pound a couple days this week, but not today when it counts :)

Maternity Clothes: The box is here... tried some on, but still holding out from actually wearing them. I have my old jeans on right now all buttoned up so I can hold out on that belly panel a little longer.

Gender: We have a pretty good idea! At our ultrasound this morning the ultrasound tech seemed really friendly so I asked her if she thought we could take a peek between the legs. She said if it was like a week later she probably could have given us a pretty good idea. She still proceeded to give us a shot from above the belly down in between the legs. I swore I saw both necessary boy parts, but thought I was crazy. The tech didn't say a word, but just left the photo up on the screen for a second. As soon as she left the room Derrik immediately said to me "We're having a boy" which confirmed the thoughts I was already having. This by no means was a confirmation, but we both feel pretty confident in what we saw. At this point I will be SHOCKED if we have a girl!

Movement: Nope

Food Cravings: Chicken salad... yum!

What I Miss: Feeling good... the sickness has come back full force this week

Labor Signs: (no comment until third trimester or so)

Sleep: Still amazing... just can't seem to get enough of it these days.

How’s Ryder Handling It: We tried to get him excited to see the baby today. I showed him ultrasound pictures of him at 12 weeks a few days ago. He was all excited at the picture on the screen this morning for about two minutes saying "baby" before he asked for his monster trucks :)

What is the same/different as the last time: Just so different. I want so badly to feel better like last time, but it's just not happening.

Symptoms: SICK! UGHHH.... I tried going off the nausea meds and it was a really bad idea. Back on them, and hoping to feel better sometime soon.

Best Moment This Week: Seeing our little one this morning :) It was so exciting seeing the baby move around like crazy, watching the heart flutter, and hearing that everything looked great. They said the baby was measuring at exactly 12 weeks 0 days today.

What I Am Looking Forward To:Finally having our first real doctors appointment next Thursday with our doctor. I hope he's a great doctor, and we think he's a good match for us.

Baby Lutz #2

And just for fun...

Ryder at 12 weeks

Pumpkins!

We've had lots of pumpkin stuff going on this week! I had never painted pumpkins before, but figured we'd give it a try this year with Ryder. Derrik wasn't overly interested in painting so I took them over to Tricia's house for the kids to do together. It didn't last long, we started after they had been playing for hours, and it was nap time! We're not the smartest Momma's sometimes, but for the five minutes it lasted they did a great job :)

Then last night Derrik decided we would carve the pumpkins. Between his baseball rehab, all the leauges he does football offiating for, and his basketball meetings starting up for the upcoming season he hasn't been able to be around much at night with us. He was excited to do something fun with Ryder (even if pumpkin carving wouldn't have been his 1st pick, but he know I was going to make him do it soon!).

Ryder watching Daddy... he was so clueless to what this pumpkin carving thing was that we've been talking about all week.

Ryder wasn't too sure about what was going on...
Checking out the inside for the first time

His face when Derrik scooped out the first spoonful of seeds

He decided he would help as long as none of it touched him!

My boys working hard on the pumpkin

Opening pumpkin #2

He really likes how they look inside huh?

This face cracks me up!

Derrik tried to touch him with it

We had some Skypa viewers during our carving!!!

Nini

Papa

Ryder getting to see the pumkins when they were finished..

2 hours later!!!

The headless horseman...

Dad's pick obviously!!!

I need to get a picture of Ryder's.... he picked some monster peaking over a grave stone

My boys and their pumpkins!!!

Baby Lutz #2 Update: Week 11

How Far Along: 11 Weeks
Size of Baby: Just over 1 1/2 inches long
Fruit Size (According to my e-mail from BabyCenter.com): A fig
Total Weight Gain: 0 Pounds
Maternity Clothes: Still holding out... My mom just shipped me all my maternity clothes from when I was pregnant with Ryder so i'm sure i'll cave by next week. They are just too comfy!
Gender: So anxious to find out.. Won't know any info on when we will find out until at least our appointment on the 28th
Movement: I swear I feel something, but according to the internet I shouldn't for at least another month... so I guess i'm just crazy :)
Food Cravings: Nothing... really ready to start craving something because it's getting old not ever wanting to eat.
What I Miss: Wanting to eat the normal foods we eat on a regular basis. This no dinner thing is making Derrik crazy!
Labor Signs: (no comment until third trimester or so)
Sleep: Great... Love it!
How’s Ryder Handling It: I had to babysit at Tricia's daycare today, and while I was rocking the little baby to sleep Ryder wasn't thrilled. He and Page weren't getting along that great at the moment, and I think he was wanting a little lovin' from his momma and that it didn't totally have to do with the baby.
What is the same/different as the last time: It's finally starting to feel like my last pregnancy when I was just sleeping a little later in the day. It's been great :)
Symptoms: The nausea has really subsided. I've still been taking the Zofran, but just in the morning. I'm waiting for a low-key morning before I decide to try out not taking it.
Best Moment This Week: Getting over a cold over the weekend and realizing how great I feel now.
What I Am Looking Forward To: Next Wednesday getting to see the little on for our first ultrasound!!! Too bad the boy/girl parts won't be visible yet... gosh i'm sooo anxious to find out!!!

To Complain or Not to Complain

Remember that shirt I talked about having ordered for Ryder for our visit to the pumpkin patch? Remember it was lost somewhere in the mail system and didn't make it on time. The sweet lady who runs the Esty shop I ordered it from offered to cover the cost of another shirt if I would pay the shipping. I figured we still had quite a bit of time left in October, plus the shirt wasn't really all Halloween and could probably be worn after the fact, so I paid the $5.00 and had another one shipped to us.

Well.... I got it today. Let me first specify that this is the shirt shown on his website...
I loved the skull look. Ryder is getting a little old to be ordering a monogrammed shirt or something like that. I thought this shirt was cute because it still had his name on it, but had a little edge to it. I really loved the cool distressed look it had to it. In the description of the shirt she said could accommodate any changes you desired, and to put it in the comments section at checkout. I requested a black t-shirt, white circle, and black lettering. White tends to wash Ryder out, and I knew he'd get it dirty the first time he wore it. She never said anything about there being an issue when we had talked after that (we even waited for her to order the black t-shirt because she didn't have it in stock), and I assumed we were good to go.

I was sooo excited when Derrik got home from the field today with the package in his hand (FINALLY!!!) and opened it up right away only to find this... Honestly... she got the shirt color and it's the same skull, but it is definitely NOT what I asked for. After all the drama i've been through with this lady do I cut my losses and keep the boring shirt, or do I e-mail her and let her know this is NOT what I ordered? I absolutely hate being a pain, but at this point the i've invested the cost of the shirt, shipping, and then shipping again to get nothing like what I asked for.

Etsy readers.... what would you do?! Complain or let it be?

Tolmachoff Farms 2010

(Sidenote: I noticed my post about out date night earlier had a little negativity in it... this one might too. Currently I am fighting off a cold... or allergies... still not feeling great due to the pregnancy, am extremely tired, have a toddler with a cold/allergies as well, and a husband who has been working since eight this morning who only had two hours off to meet us at the pumpkin patch today. I'm just cranky... i'll try to stop being cranky soon!)

Every year I get super excited for fall right around the end of July. I get so excited about fall clothes, pumpkins in the house, halloween decorations, windows open, the smell of pumpkin pie, and apple candles... I love it! Most importantly though I ALWAYS look forward to the pumpkin patch!!! I always build it up in my mind to be way more then it ever is, and always the day we go really think to myself that i'm not going to let myself get so excited next year. I mean the last two years we've been in Arizona, and I think everyone knows the desert isn't exactly going to allow for a picture perfect fall. It has felt that way all week though. We've had windows open and enjoyed some cooler temperatures, but of course on our pumpkin patch day it decided to get warmer. We didn't see triple digits, but it was enough to make us sweat and for Ryder's cheeks to be beat red within minutes of arriving. I also ordered Ryder a super cute shirt for the pumpkin patch off of Etsy which according to USPS was delivered, but if you notice the shirt Ryder has on in pictures... it is obviously NOT the shirt I ordered, and is a Kohl's $5 special. The lady I ordered from was sweet enough to replace the shirt if I covered the shipping, but it won't be here until next week. A little late for the pumpkin patch!

So we arrived at the pumpkin patch. We all wanted to have a great time, but I honestly just wasn't feeling great (for reasons I said up above). We meet up with Steve, Tricia, and Page who were there a little before us and the heat was already getting to them. They stuck around for a little bit, but then needed to get home because the heat was not agreeing with Tricia's 7 months pregnant body. I don't blame here! I'm 10 weeks and way bigger of a baby then she is already!!! We went over to the first area with the baby chicks, and immediately we see a bee swarming Ryder's face. Of course it stings him. He handled it like a champ! He didn't even cry, and i'm positive he got stung because I had to pull the stinger out of his cheek. His cheek got a little white welt and turned even redder then the sun was already making them. He recovered great from the incident and we moved on...

I handed Derrik the camera to get a picture of Ryder and I with the chicks... and this was the best out of the three photos he took! Obvously he doesn't know how to flatter my figure!!! HAHA That is the only photo I have of me at the pumpkin patch so I hope you enjoyed the view!!

Tricia showing Page the baby chick
Love this picture... Tricia was trying to get Page to look at the camera so I could get a photo of the two of them and the chick decided to risk it's life and jump!
Tricia face is classic... haha

Ryder and Page about to go on the tractor ride

My Little Man

Before they took off he realized he was letting the woman do all the driving and asked to be in his own seat... think he was excited?

Off they go....

Tricia and Steve

They're back

Daddy and Ryder going through the mini maze together

Ryder making sure we were still following him

Checking out the view from the viewing tower of the HUGE family maze!

The family maze is seriously NOT for families!!! (Side note: Tricia be glad you guys left before this if your feet were already swollen!)We should have known when at the entrance there was a sign that said "Bring Water". They give you a paper with a six slots to fill in. You have to find the puzzle piece in the mailbox within the maze and tape it to the paper according to find your way out. We can do it right?! Yeah not so much. We only found two of the six puzzle pieces and instead used our best instinct possible to get out... about 30-40 minutes of it! We were also on a time crunch due to Derrik's work schedule today so we spent most of our time wondering around in corn... fun huh? This maze was not meant for families because all we saw were cranky kids, crankier mothers, and many fathers who all thought they knew the way out but were constantly saying "opps another dead end" while the mother and children whined again that they wanted out. Needless to say there is a little cheering when you see the end of the corn maze!!!

My boys finding one of the two puzzle pieces we found

Drinking some of that water they said you would need...

Of course they are conveniently selling it right at the end!

Onto my favorite part.... pictures of my boys with pumpkins. Lots of whining by me in this post, but I think I realize when I look at my pictures when I get home why I look forward to it every year. The pumpkin photos are my favorite photos of the year pretty much every time! LOVE THEM!!!

He still thinks they are balls and kept throwing them

Searching for just the right one

Daddy asking Ryder if this is the one

He approves!

BUT decided he wanted to take these ones home too...

so of course we got them.

We might have to try out pumpkin painting for the first time this year!

It was a hot rushed mess at the pumpkin patch, but honestly I did enjoy my time with my boys. I try so hard to just let the rest go and enjoy the moment because it's crazy to me that we are about to already celebrate Ryder's 3rd Halloween. I'm sure he won't be excited for the pumpkin patch too many more Halloweens. We are looking forward to our pumpkin painting, carving, and trick-or-treating in the weeks to come!!!