The Friday Five: July Update

5. Daddy's becoming a pancake expert. Hannah's favorite concoction is his new "Dora" complete with a M&M eyes, a chocolate chip smile, and cocoa hairdo









4. We recently bought a slightly larger kiddie pool for Hannah and she LOVES it. There's only one thing to watch out for though, the hippopotamus that lives on the bottom! Don't know where Hannah comes up with these things, but the swim shoes were a must so it wouldn't nibble on her toes.













3. Hannah learned the joy of licking the beaters when mommy makes cookies! She also helped pour each ingredient into the bowl and turn the mixer on and off. I'm not brave enough to teach her how to crack the eggs yet!

















2. Hannah had a blast at Vacation Bible School! Whenever I went to check on her or give the nursery workers a little break she demanded that I "GO AWAY!" Hmmm. Is someone ready for preschool? She loved every minute of every day and reports that her favorite activity was the bounce house. We had over 150 children attend!









1. I went in for my 13 week check-up this morning and brought Hannah along. She was so excited to hear the baby's heartbeat. But....more scares. The doctor couldn't find it! We heard plenty of swish swishing but she said that was me because it wasn't fast enough. So....I ended up with an ultrasound and the baby is JUST FINE!!! I couldn't believe how much he/she had grown in just a couple of weeks! It was exciting for Hannah to see the picture of the baby and watch it's arms and legs thrashing about. We also got to see the flickering of the heartbeat which is always very reassuring. (Turns out that the doctor was listening too low--kind of the same scenario as my first ultrasound so I guess I'm carrying high! Boy?)

Sleeping Bear Dunes Camping Trip

Over the 4th of July weekend we went camping at the Sleeping Bear Dune National State Park. It was absolutely gorgeous with a million things to do and see. Our campsite was spacious and relatively private. The bathrooms were also amongst the cleanest we've visited while camping :)

















It took quite a bit of coaxing, but we got Hannah into the water this year. She enjoyed feeling the waves splash on her legs and even waded out fairly far from the shore with daddy.













I thought Hannah would be too young to appreciate the dune climb so I sent Caleb up on his own. What would mommy know? She ran chasing after him and made it all the way to the top! She decided that crawling was the best way down which landed her head first into the sand at one point so daddy carried her the rest of the way.













One morning we decided to try a float/canoe trip. The first hour or so was great! We were all having a nice, relaxing time and Hannah even sat in the middle by herself. Unfortunately, when we got to the lake portion of the trip, we tipped over. Hannah was mortified and I don't think she'll be going near a canoe for quite some time now. Thankfully, we were only in about 1-2 feet of water when we went over so it was pretty easy to get upright again. The last 2 hours of the trip were spent with me holding Hannahs' hands and trying to console her. We topped it off with ice cream so hopefully she won't have only bad memories of this trip :)











We spent a lot of time at the beach enjoying the beautiful coastline and perfect weather. Hannah loved her little turtle floaty that we got her in a cute little town nearby.














We will definitely be making another camping trip to this location again soon. It was one of the best campgrounds ever!

Balloons!

Last Saturday, we headed out to the Howell Balloon Fest. We went a few years ago and the balloons never launched so we were a bit skeptical. It was a hot evening, but there was a nice
breeze that made it bearable.



































The balloons did launch and they were beautiful! We liked the Sandra Boynton, out favorite children's book author, the best.

Baby Coddington Update

I had my 9 week ultrasound this morning and got quite the scare. The doctor was looking at the monitor and I could tell by the look on her face that it was not good. The tears started streaming down my face as I waited for her to say that the baby had no heartbeat. But, she turned to me and said that there was actually no baby. The tears came faster as she offered to try again.

Praise the Lord that she found baby Coddington hiding at the very tip of my uterus. She decided to try zooming out on the screen and caught a little glimpse of something. Once she got in the right spot I saw the reassuring flicker of the heartbeat and the .90 inch Teddy Graham-looking blob. I've never been so relieved in my life! The doctor said that the baby's measuring about 9 weeks and 3 days old which gives me a due date of January 28th.

















We are just so thankful that the Lord has blessed us with another little baby. He is always so faithful to our family. I am constantly reminded to turn my eyes to Him to guide our family. He knows the perfect timing for His plans and I need to learn to trust Him more.

Our family would like to thank everyone from the bottom of our hearts for your prayers. We feel incredibly blessed!

"Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart."
Psalm 37:4

The Friday Five: Camping

My only experience with camping during my childhood was Girl Scout camp somewhere in rural Missouri during a rainy, cold week. When I married Caleb he was always sharing fun memories of his family taking camping trips over the summer.

Before Hannah we did some tent camping, but once she joined the family we thought that camping might be a little more pleasant if we had a pop-up. So, about 3 years ago, we bit the bullet and purchased a new (older model) camper.

(Worth every penny, wouldn't you say?) LOL

The first two years of Hannah's life I can't say were too fun camping, especially when she was just learning to walk and, therefore, wanting to toddle this way and that but not having the stability to do so. We somehow managed to entertain her at the campgrounds during those years.

But this year is a different story! Every morning she wakes up and asks if we can go camping again. Our first trip of this season was up to Mackinac with JuJu and PaPa and a few weekends ago we went just north of Lansing with families from our small group. She LOVED both trips!

We have found camping to be an economical way to explore new cities and spend quality time together as a family. Caleb's mother even gifted us a camping journal where we can record our adventures. As Hannah gets older, it becomes even more fun.

Our favorite campgrounds so far are (some of these pictures are a few years old):

5. Sleeper (Michigan thumb area)--had a fun Halloween program with petting zoo, parades, decorations and more












4. Sleeping Bear Dunes (pretty sure we'll like it...first time here will be next weekend)

3. Sleepy Hollow (just north of Lansing)--private, spacious sites












2. Wilderness (Mackincac)--location is great!









1. Hoffmaster (Muskegon)--beautiful sites within a short walking distance to Lake Michigan








Hopefully we will be able to start exploring beyond the state of Michigan as the kid(s) get older!

To Preschool or Not?

Recently, Caleb and I decided that we will have Hannah attend preschool in the fall. With baby on the way and an almost 3yo who has given up nap time I think I'm going to need a few hours a week for a little break.

At first I felt so selfish to even consider the idea of sending Hannah into the care of someone other than mommy. However, after thinking and praying about it a ton I realize that there are so many benefits for her.

1. It will be healthy for her to get used to spending time with someone other than mommy. Since we have no family in the area she really doesn't get a chance to experience life independent from me very often.

2. She will be able to learn social skills such as sharing. She's already pretty good at this, but I think it will help her to learn these things when I'm not constantly directing her.

3. Hannah's getting a little bored at home. This will give her an opportunity to experience new activities. Every day the first things she asks me in the morning are, "Where are we going?" and "Can I see my friends today?" She looks forward to time with other little kiddos. Dance class is definitely one of her favorite activities right now.


















4. She will get individual attention and help with skills like writing her name, cutting, etc.

It will only be about 4-5 hours a week, but for some reason it's hard to let go. I know she will absolutely love it. We're hoping that once the baby is here she'll consider it her special time for just Hannah. And mommy will be able to squeeze in some time to write curriculum for Faith Quest, go grocery shopping, or clean this filthy house!

May Update

Where did May go? Hannah spent lots and lots of time being spoiled by both sets of grandparents this month. After our 10 days in St. Louis, JuJu and PaPa came to visit for a while.

First, we celebrated Caleb's graduation from the University of Michigan with a bowling party. We are so happy that he's finally done with his Engineering Management degree!

Hannah also started dance classes. It is so incredibly adorable to see the little girls prancing around in tutus!

We also had a fun visit with JuJu and PaPa and topped it off with a camping trip to Mackinac.

Hannah also has something she wants to share with you: