Children's Musuem

For Labor Day we took Ethan to the Discovery Gateway Children's Museum. I've heard good things about this place but was afraid that it would be too old for Ethan. Once we got there we loved it and so did Ethan. It was totally worth our time and money.

First there was the beehive. A fun place for kids to put balls in tubes and send them all around the room. Ethan's favorite part was where he put the ball in this tub and it sucked it up. It reminded me of those tubs they use at the bank drive up.

Next was a music table that Ethan loved to play on. Jared and I even got in on the action.

After that was the playroom. This was by far Ethan's favorite place. It had a construction zone where he used blocks to build things.

A house where Ethan pretended to cook

A grocery story were Ethan got to go shopping and check out the groceries.

A farm area where Ethan stacked up the barrels of hay and drove the truck.

We spent most of our time in the playroom and I'm pretty sure Ethan would have spent all day in there if we'd let him. After this we got some lunch and then came back to the Museum to see the other rooms.

Out on the roof was a helicopter for the kids to play on and of course Ethan loved it. But it was really busy and crowded so he didn't get to play on it too long.

Next we went into the science room where they had all kinds of thing to build with. Here Jared is helping Ethan build a car.

And we can't forget about Madelyn! She was a good baby and slept most of the time giving us the chance to spend some good one on one time with Ethan. It was a great day and a fun way to spend it together.

One Month Old & Potty Training

Madelyn is now one month old! A few things we've learned in her short little life is that she had thrush and now has reflux. This is why my poor little baby was so fussy and always crying. It often seemed like when she was awake all she did was cry. But now she is taking some medicine and is a happy baby. She is just starting to make those precious little coos that I love.

In other big news Ethan is potty trained (well pretty much anyway). Last week we went to the store and let him pick out his new underwear. He of course picked the Disney pack that was full of Toy Story, Cars, Incredible's and Wally. All his favorite shows.

Then he got to pick out his own potty seat, Cars of course.

Here he is modeling his Cars underwear for me, such a silly boy!

We made a potty chart that he put a sticker on each time he went in the toilet. This was super exciting for him. Once he filled his chart with stickers we told him that he'll get a present.

He did pretty good the first day and seemed to be understanding what was going on. The second day was BAD and I almost gave up but decided to stick with it. We had a few more days of good and a few more days of bad. Then on Monday it seemed to just click. We've had very little accidents and he's doing great!

Photos

Yesterday we went to have family pictures taken. Unfortunately she was not a happy baby and didn't cooperate really well. But we did get a few good photos. At least enough to make me happy.

3 weeks already?

Yup tomorrow Madelyn will be 3 weeks old. It has been an exciting 3 weeks as we've tried to adjust to life with a very active and stubborn 2 year old and beautiful but some what fussy newborn. Here are a few pictures from the last 3 weeks...

These pictures are from the day we left the hospital. Ethan had spent the night with us and was very excited to bring his sister home.

Here is Madelyn in her coming home out fit...

This is Madelyn's favorite place to sleep. And for the first week or so this is the only place we could get her to sleep. Jared and I would take turns holding her through out the night.

And after a few nights of holding her all night we bought this...

And Jared used the box and made this for Ethan, his very one playhouse.

Remember my post about the boppy pillow from when Ethan was a newborn? Well some things never change...

Look at my cute little family...

Ethan is a very big helper. He LOVES to hold his baby sister and loves to feed her. He'll usually sit on the couch and watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse while he's being my helper.

Introducing...

Madelyn Carol Vidoni

7 lbs. 13 oz

18 1/2 in. long

We started our day out bright and early by arriving at the hospital at 6:15 am. Here I am all ready to go and waiting to be taken to the operating room.

Once I was ready to go they invited Jared in and started the surgery. At 7:59 am we heard the first cries of our precious little girl. We think she looks a lot like Ethan when he was born.

The surgery went well and Madelyn is beautiful and perfect in every way. We feel so blessed to have this little angel in our family.

Ethan loves his little sister and brought her a bunny that he made at build-a-bear. He was very excited to give her the bunny.

My parents and little sister were at the hospital with us and helped us with Ethan. They kept him while I was in surgery and then they took him to the nursery so that he could see his little sister for the first time and watch her get a bath.

We are madly in love with this little princess and can't wait to take her home.

She's almost here!

Mark your calenders! Baby girl Vidoni will be arriving bright and early on August 2nd. I'm scheduled to have a c-section on Aug. 2nd which means there are only about 10 days left to get ready. Wow! It will be here before I know it.

We are also still trying to decided what to name her so...if you have any suggestions I'd love to hear them.

A day with Jamo

My little brother is leaving so soon! He'll only be here for about 4 more weeks. So when he invited me and Ethan to Thanksgiving point I said YES! (even though I was tired and not feeling very good) Jamason (aka Jamo) is working at Thanksgiving point this summer which means that we get into most of the events for free! We went to the farm land and then to the dino museum. The kids loved to see the animals and pet the cows and horses. Best of all they got to ride the horses. Ethan told me that he could do it all by himself and he did. He didn't need me to walk along with him and would often say "Yee Haw!" Oh how my little boy is growing up.

The Zoo

Last week Jared took part of the day off and we went to Hogle Zoo with his sisters and their kids. It was a lot of fun and so exciting to watch Ethan get so excited about the animals. He seemed to really enjoy the zoo this year. Unfortunately I was not very prepared because I forgot to charge my camera battery so I only took a few pictures.

Ethan really loved the monkeys

Here the boys are looking at the elephants and watching them eat.

Here they are watching the baby elephant eat strawberries

Margy, Lucy, & Macie

My last photo of the day. We actually got to see the gorillas moving around and even pounding on their chests. After this we went to a little show that talked about animal homes and the kids got to pet a possum and a snake. Then it was on to the train ride and some fun on the playground. It was a fun family day :)