We hope everyone had a great Easter weekend…we sure did. Saturday morning we ventured over to Papa Ronnie & G’ma Jeryl’s house to spend the weekend with them. We had a great time just hanging out with them (and watching alot of the NCAA tournament) and then on Sunday Great-G’ma Bertie came over and we had an Easter feast. It was a nice, relaxing weekend and good to get out of Des Moines one final time before Baby McArtor joins the family.

I think Easter might just be Anya’s new favorite holiday….she got spoiled. In less than 36 hours, so got to open 3 Easter baskets jam packed with gifts and goodies…she was in heaven. So much so that, as she opened her final Easter basket Sunday night when we got back home, so thought it was her birthday! As she was digging into her latest basket of gifts she looked up at Jason & I and said “I love my birthday”. This confused us a little bit, so we simply told her it wasn’t her birthday. But then we started to think about all the stuff she had gotten in such a short period of time and we figured it out. She even wanted us to sing happy birthday to her that night….such a silly girl!

Anyway, here are a few pictures of our Easter.

Last night we decorated Easter Eggs and had alot of fun. I started by boiling 8 eggs to decorate, but 2 broke while boiling, so I gave them to Jason & Anya to eat. They decided they were so good they had to have another, so we were down to 5 eggs to decorate. Turned out to be plenty! Here are a few pictures of our artistic abilities…….

After having Jason gone for the last 2 weekends, Anya & I were both very glad to have him home to hang out with today. I think he was glad to not be sleeping in a hotel for the weekend either!

Due to nicer weather (aka above freezing), most of the snow in our yard is gone, and that is fine by us! Jason is already planning his spring yard work plan of attack and I can’t wait for it to be nice enough for him to get started on it. Our shed finally unfroze, so we were able to get in and get the infant car seats out–so I can stop worrying about that now. I disassembled the whole thing to wash the fabric parts and got it reassembled today, so now all we have to do is install it in the van. I remember when I was pregnant with Anya, we practiced putting the car seat in and out of the car several times. Now, we are old pros at it–no practicing necessary this time around!

Today we also ventured out to buy a double stroller and I am very excited about our new purchase. I did ALOT of research on double strollers, both on the internet and in stores, and was mostly unimpressed with those I came across–until I happened upon the Sit-n-Stand strollers. I read a lot of great reviews on them on the internet, but had yet to actually see someone in person using one. Well, Anya & I were at the mall last Monday and I saw a lady with one, so I tracked her down and got her opinion on it. She had a 3 year old and a 6 month old (similar to what we will have) and had nothing but good to say about it. So, today we went on a mission to get one at Baby Depot and we were in luck…they had 1 in stock and it was $30 dollars cheaper than what I had found them for on the internet. I was thrilled! So, we came home, assembled it and Anya had fun playing with it, in it and pushing it around all night. Who knew a stroller could make us all so happy?!?

Yeah for the sunshine!!! I think we can all agree on that….

We are still recovering from the flu that wiped us out last week…mostly just an annoying cough that likes to hang around. But, this nicer weather has definitely put us in better spirits, so that should help. Last night, Jason & Anya took advantage of the 50 degree weather and spent an hour or so outside getting the garbage and recycling separated and set out to the curb, brought the mail in and even trekked out to the shed to see if it was still frozen shut (which it is). They also grilled us a steak for supper which was delicious. Now I really have spring fever….. Here are a few pictures of Anya enjoying the nice weather.

Anya & I survived our 2 weekends alone while Jason was out of town at graphic art shows. We had fun with our “girls” weekend, but we were both very glad to have Daddy back home. I think Jason is glad to have the trips over also, even though it was a great experience for him.

This seems to be the month of Dr. appointments for us—Monday Anya had her 3 week check-up for her tubes and both ears looked great. Today I had my 34 week appointment and baby McArtor is still growing right on track. Next week we have dentist appointments and another check-up for Anya’s eyes. Then I start going to the baby doctor once weekly–so we have plenty to keep us busy in the next few weeks! For those of you wondering how big I am getting, here is a peek at what I look like 34 weeks pregnant:

…..finally!

Our household was hit hard this last week by the flu bug…influenza A to be exact! It all started last Friday with Anya having a high fever when she woke up and basically being so wiped out she couldn’t keep her eyes open. I had no idea what was wrong with her (the flu never even crossed my mind…duh!), so I took her to her ped and after a few swabs up the nose (which she was NOT a big fan of), we knew what was wrong. Then I got it on Saturday and Jason came home from his weekend in Cedar Falls with it on Monday. So, after being down and out for most the week, I think I can finally say we are all well on the road to recovery. Hopefully another weekend of lots of rest and not much else will be exactly what we need to completely kick the few lingering effects we have!

Thanks to everyone who has called and checked in on us all week!!