More of the big kids visiting

Its been an awesome week and just as I anticipated, it flew by at record speed. Moving from 35 to 36 weeks pregnant was easy because I had so many people around to enjoy it. Case & Joe were only here for a day, but as always they and the girls left a big impression. Casey was in normal Casey form and psychotically cleaned things that didn't need to be cleaned. For example, she found my clorox wipes and tried to clean my kitchen cabinet doors. When she went for the microwave, I just had to stop her.

We took all the kids to the park in the morning before Casey & Joe left: Then we said our goodbyes and Helen accompanied me to the birthing center. In case you are new to the blog, or need forgot, I posted some photos of the birthing center last September when we first went there. I was really excited that Helen went with me, I really wanted her to see it and I wanted her to meet Emily, the midwife. I know how important personalized prenatal care is to Helen and I really wanted to share with her the birthing center and I also really wanted her honest opinion of what she thought. We had a fine appointment, I only gained a half a pound in the last week which Emily said was fine, the baby was measuring right on track at 35cm's and the heartrate looked good. We also did the test for Group B Strep. I was positive for GBS with my last pregnancy which meant that every 4 hours during labor, I required IV antibiotics. It really isn't that bad of a complication. I kind of just assume that it will come back positive this time too.

One of the reasons this week was so great was because Justin is so incredibly awesome. While Helen and I went to Topeka, Justin gave Nakobe lunch and took him to Pillsbury crossing: Nakobe was pumped because he got to ride in Justin's truck. Apparently he had never been in a car that did not have automatic windows so he got to roll the windows up and down and he really thought that was cool. He was also unfamiliar with a stick shift, so Justin let him put the car into reverse and when we got home Nakobe exclaimed "I backed up the truck!". It was really cute, and I loved getting a glimpse of how fun life is going to be with a 5 year old around. Later that night Nakobe called his dad and told him that he thought his dad should get a truck. Helen explained to him that they were going to have to wait until their car needed to be replaced before they could think about a truck.

On Thursday, Justin continued his run as an awesome husband, dad, and dude by letting both Helen and I sleep in. He fed both the boys their breakfast and then took them to the park at 8am! When he came home, we had a snack and then he and I took Nakobe and Jackson to a different park to feed the ducks and play in the playground. On the way home from the playground I asked Nakobe what he wanted for lunch and he said "Watermelon" and seeing as how we had been cleaned out of food the previous two days and needed more food, we really needed to stop at the store anyways. So, we got a watermelon for Nakobe and he was happy. We came home and had lunch and then we loaded everyone up and went to Tuttle Creek Lake. We showed Nakobe the dam and explained to him what it was for. Nakobe and Jackson built a sand castle with a moat: Then we went out for Pizza for dinner: despite appearing happy in this photo, Jackson does not like Pizza and I really wonder what kind of kid doesn't like PIZZA? Seriously??? When we got home from Pizza, Justin started a fire in the fire pit and we made S'mores. I wish I had a photo of that, but I don't. But it was yummy and Nakobe had a great time.

I was so glad that Helen and Nakobe came to spend a week with us. I hope they know how much I needed it and how much fun I had. It had been a long time since I had spent time with Nakobe, I think two whole years and it was so great to see him be such an engaging little man. Last time I saw him he was a toddler, now he is indeed a little man. He likes books and LOVES to talk. Justin told a story of he and Nakobe in the truck. Justin was singing and Nakobe said "Justin, the car is for talking", so Justin stopped singing and engaged Nakobe in conversation. Now that they have been home for a day and have had time to settle back in, I hope they are glad that they came too. It will be a long time before we see them again and we will definitely miss them.