Wheeler's News

Wheeler has been waiting patiently to share his big news. At the end of this summer he is going to be a big brother!  He has let the cat out of the bag on a few occasions by casually lifting up my shirt and asking to "see it". And pointing out "my baby" ( an ultrasound picture on our fridge) when guests come over. And he has already decided that the only two acceptable names for Swan baby #2 will be Finn McMissile for a boy and Holly Shiftwell for a girl. (Yes we watch Cars2 just a little bit too often in our house).
Matt and I are also very excited about becoming a family of 4. For those who don't follow, we have trouble getting pregnant and so we feel relieved and excited to have made it successfully through another series of fertility treatments. Similarly to our efforts to conceive Wheeler, we used a combination of Metformin and Clomid medication with a trigger shot and this time around an IUI. By fertility standards it is a fairly non-intense treatment, although when you are in the middle of it all with the emotional swings and constant Dr. appointments it doesn't feel like such a walk in the park. The entire process took about a year as we had a few other health complications to address before starting the medication.
So now it is the fun part! And this pregnancy has been going very well so far! Wheeler helps to keep me busy and active and the first trimester has flown by with nothing more than a little feeling overtired and the constant desire to stuff my face. It is a catch 22 for me when I am pregnant... I feel sick if I don't keep something in my stomach, but all the eating makes for early weight gain and a less than lovely looking pre-bump bump. Oh well, c'est la vie. Time to bust out the belly band and pretend that it is just a really big baby. With this pregnancy I have craved my usual lemonade, big glasses of milk, mashed potatoes, and this time around bagels and pickles.
We don't know if it will be a boy or a girl yet. My hunch changes on a weekly basis. But we will find out soon and keep you posted. Updates and pictures to follow!

Party at the Park

 In an effort to make up for having a lousy birthday that is crammed in right between Christmas and New years birthday, we threw Wheels a party the end of January. We talked it up big time making sure that he knew it was a special 2 year old party just for him. He helped deliver and mail the invitations (that he was very excited about because they had his picture on the front) and we counted the sleeps for his special day.
 The morning of his party Wheeler was a crazy man. His energy was fueled by the cupcakes he was watching me make, the treat-bags with bubbles and toy cars sitting on the counter, and the excitement of having Grandma and Papa Swan staying at our house. (They moved back from their year long adventure in Malaysia that same week) I felt like I was equally as crazy. We had decided to have the party at a park around the corner. But the night before it decided to rain. So while I prepared the food, I was also mentally preparing for 10 toddlers and their parents to invade my little house. For those who aren't aware just how neurotic I actually am... the 2 things in the world that throw me over the sanity ledge are last minute changes in plans, and having people see my house in a gross and messy state. So it was good times from about 8:30-10:30. But then the clouds parted, the sun came out and we made it over the park.  Sigh of relief!
The party itself was great and went off without a hitch. We were slightly upstaged by another party going on at the park with a BBQ and gigantic bounce house. Sorry Wheeler. Not for you. But the kids were just happy to run and play on the playground. The weather was beautiful. And we had lots of good food. We were smart and just ordered sandwiches and wraps from the deli. And I got to try out some fun pinterest ideas like rainbow fruit kabobs, and veggie cups with dip.
After lunch we sang happy birthday and blew out the candles ( a few times). Then cupcakes. A Lightening McQueen Pinata. (candy eases the blow of another kid opening presents right in front of you when you are 2.)  And birthday presents.
It was a great day. Wheeler was so excited to be the center of attention (when is he not in our house...) But it felt good to do something extra special and all about him. I don't think it is going to be an every year occurrence. As a first time mom I had little idea how much effort, time and $ goes into throwing a kids birthday party. Maybe by his 4th or 5th I will be ready to attempt it again.
Here are some of the pictures taken by Wheeler's grandpa at the party.

Happy Birthday Wheeler!

Dear Wheeler,
Today you are two. What fun it has been to watch you grow and change in the last year. You are such a fun little dude and we are so glad to have you in our family!

Here is a little bit about you on your 2nd birthday...

You are a very happy kid, with lots of energy. You wake up very cheerful and EARLY in the morning ready to play. Most mornings we hear you singing to your bunny and calling out "mommy/daddy, where are you?"  You like to be sure to know where we are at all times. But you are starting to play very well on your own. Your favorite things to play with are cars and trains. You know all the names of the Cars and Thomas characters and we like to eavesdrop on your funny dialogues between the toys. (eg. "Hi Francisco, lets race. Ok Lightning, get set go!") You also like to paint, play with your tools, legos, and read books. You have an awesome little memory and can recite your favorite books along with us while we read to you. Your favorite book is called "Little Blue Truck". You are learning your ABC's and like to point out W for Wheeler, M for Mommy, and D for daddy.  You know all your shapes and colors and can count to 12.
Your favorite foods are cheese, raspberries, scrambled eggs and fish.  You are a very good eater and have a big appetite. You love to help mommy bake. And you are definitely all about doing things yourself. "I do it!" Cracking eggs is your favorite task and you can make toast all by yourself. (this is after we had a flour explosion baking cookies. Wheeler learned not to turn the mixer on high without asking first!)

 It is a good thing we live in Texas because you love to run and play outside, and will climb and hang like a monkey on anything.You are very proud that you can use the big kid swings at the park and taught yourself to climb backwards up the big slide.
Your daddy is teaching you all about sports. Your favorite is football and you will only play it with him. ("no mommy, you just watch") You like to be rough and to tackle and push and dog pile. You also love baseball and can hit the ball off your tee and run around the bases. You like to swim. And are getting braver on your own in the water.

Your best pal is your dog Murphy. You play hide and seek together, and you insist on holding his leash all by yourself on walks. You are very silly with Murphy and like to ride him, pull his tail and ears. You tease him with snacks, take his blanket and toys away from him, and make him chase you for them. He is very gentle with you, and you get most of your "breaks" from forgetting to be gentle with him. You make up for it in kisses and milk bones ( which have to be hidden from you as you will use the entire box making him roll over, because it makes you laugh)
You are talking a lot now and come up with the funniest things to say. "Mommy I like peas! Make you tall," and you call peanut butter "peanut chocolate". Your favorite expression lately is "I need it." Which you say very dramatically.  You are also quite the backseat driver and scold us if we use the horn or  hit the breaks too hard. You go on pretend trips to Nana's and Grandma's house a  \lot. You will tell us "bye bye I go go Nana's now", exit the room, then return and say "hello I home now."

As you have closed in on your terrible two's you have shown your turkey side. You are no stranger to temper tantrums, and  we often find you hiding under the bed sneaking the Ipod, or under the table sneaking chocolate chips or cereal. You think you are so smart, and if ever get busted and scolded you will sweetly smile, give a hug and say "hi mommy, mommy happy!?!" You like to take your time getting dressed, and lately it is more of a wrestle process. You also bargain with everything asking for "2?" when handed any snack or treat. You try to extend bed and nap time routines to the last second, requesting additional songs, use of the potty, rubbing your tummy, or if all else fails you will even fake a cough and ask for medicine.
However, the good by far out weighs the not so good, and most of the time you are our sweet, handsome, and funny little man. You make us laugh every day, and are the biggest joy in our life. We are so grateful for you. We love you buddy. We hope you have a great year as a 2 year old!
Love Mommy

*Here is a video clip we took this morning. It is a pretty good glimpse into two year old Wheeler.