Happy Halloween!

We had our Halloween celebrations the last two days.  They didn't quite go as planned, but we still had fun.  Friday was Daddy's work party.  Spouses/kids come in the afternoon to "trick-or-treat" inside.  It's nice to walk around indoors during the daytime.  And you can pick what candy you want since everyone just sets it out :)  As usual we had hoped to get there around 4.  But Rebecca had other plans.  Friday morning she started showing signs of a cold, but not too bad.  But when she woke up from her nap it was obvious she wasn't feeling well at all.  She cried and cried.  She refused to put on her costume.  She actually wouldn't put on any clothes for a while (just had a diaper and an undershirt).  It took Mommy a long time to get her settled and get her regular clothes back on.  And we finally made it out the door about a half hour later than planned sans costume...red nose and eyes and all :P  By the time we got to Daddy's work she was perking up a little.  And once we got to Daddy's desk we managed to get her cheerleader shirt on and ribbons in her hair.  That was as good as it was going to get :P  Rebecca got a little excited when she was able to pick out candy...and eat some.  But she did not like the kids that has masks on at all.  She's pretty scared of most costumes this year.  Since we got there late we didn't stay very long.  But Rebecca still enjoyed it, and it got her a little more excited about dressing up.

Yesterday was trick-or-treating in Grandville.  And Rebecca was actually excited to put on her costume.  We didn't go out.  We just handed out (and ate) candy.  Rebecca would stand at the window, waiting and asking where the kids were.  But as soon as anyone would come she would run away, scared.  At least she got to see a few friends.  And there were a few costumes she liked...any princess, Winnie the Pooh, Tigger and Buzz Lightyear.  Rebecca was pretty bummed when we told her it was over and she had to go to bed.  I'm sure costumes and candy will be the first things she talks about this morning.

Rebecca is still battling her cold.  The last two nights she's gotten up in the night and had to be settled back down and rocked for a while.  But thankfully it was only once each night.  She didn't nap yesterday either.  Hopefully she'll get back on track with that soon.  Being sick and lacking sleep don't work well.

Aside from candy and colds Rebecca is definitely going through some developmental changes.  All of a sudden she wants to be so much more independent.  She wants to dress/undress herself (just 2 weeks ago she could have cared less), she wants to be involved in everything, she has a strong opinion about everything.  If you're putting peanut butter on her toast, she wants to spread it, if you're cooking, she wants to watch or help...things like that.  She carries her stool around the house so she can see/have access to everything Mommy is doing.  We have to be much  more careful about what we leave out/on counters/on desks now.  Rebecca doesn't like you to help her with much now.  She knows what she wants, when she wants it...and she lets you know :P  Apparently she has a new fascination with being able to take off her pants by herself.  I've recently found her sleeping at nap time with her pants around her ankles :P  And she rarely wakes up from her nap with both (if any) socks on now.  Rebecca is starting to make progress with potty training.  And almost always insists that she wears underwear.

On the flip side, Rebecca is also being VERY clingy to Mommy right now.  I can hardly leave her sight sometimes.  Even if Daddy is by her.  She wants to be a part of everything I do.  She wants to sit on my lap at every meal.  It's sweet, but sometimes makes it very difficult to do anything.  Our Kindermusik teacher explained this phase very well in class last week.  The symbol for our class is the kangaroo.  At this age kids want to explore, learn and be independent.  But they also need to be able to run back to Mommy and Daddy for reassurance and security.  Like a kangaroon in a pouch.  So Rebecca is exploring her new abilities and independence.  But she also needs to know Mommy is right there...just in case :)  I'm sure this phase will last a while as we transition her from the crib to a bed and as we prepare for another baby.  Lots of changes to come.  And she'll need Mommy and Daddy close by to reassure her that everything is ok :)

Calvin/Hope Soccer Game

Had to get in full gear for this one :)  Even though the Knights lost it was still fun to go.

Happy First Birthday, Jonah!

Yesterday we went to Grand Blanc to celebrate Mary's nephew's first birthday.  Jonah is getting so big!  He had a bouncy ball party because he LOVES balls...of all kinds.  And got quite a few as gifts.  We had a fun afternoon with family - eating lunch (yummy homemade lasagna), opening presents, eating cake and playing/visiting.  As usual the kids all had a blast and wanted to play longer.  And Rebecca was so excited to get cake and ice cream :)  It was good to see everyone, and it was a beautiful day for a drive.

Go Knights!

Rebecca went to her first Calvin soccer game on Wednesday.  It had rained/stormed all morning, so we didn't think we could go.  But about a half hour before the game the sun peeked out.  So we (Rebecca and Mary) quickly got ready (no time to find our Calvin gear :P) and rushed over.  We were so glad we did.  Rebecca LOVED it.  She's usually such a wiggle worm.  But she sat next to Mommy in the stands with no problems.  We saw the last 30 min. of the first half.  Then we had planned to head home.  But Rebecca really wanted to see more.  So we stayed for the first 15 min. of the second half.  And even then it was tough to get her to leave. 

She loved watching the goalies :)  At home she often puts socks on her hands and carries her soccer ball, saying she's the goalie.  Maybe she'll follow in Mommy's footsteps and play at Calvin someday.

Rebecca was also quite the cheerleader.  She kept clapping, saying "Go Knights!"  The people around us got a kick out of it.  It was a fun afternoon, and Rebecca loved watching the girls play.  And although we didn't get to see Calvin score any goals they did beat Trine 3-1.  Maybe we'll try to squeeze in one more game when the men play Hope next week.

9 + 3 + 2 + 6 = Two Miracles

In case you haven't heard, we are expecting Baby Voogt #2 next May!  Yesterday we had our 2nd ultrasound at 9 weeks, 3 days.  So far so good.  We saw our 2nd little miracle moving around and heard the heartbeat.  Rebecca loved being able to see the baby again.  After a year of fertility treatments we are truly amazed to see God's beautiful little creation.  And we feel so blessed.  We pray for God's continued blessing on this pregnancy and this baby.  We are already so excited to meet him or her.  And Rebecca is excited to be a big sister.  Mary is not feeling very good, but is doing her best to get through the last few weeks of the first trimester while keeping up with a toddler.

Here are a few pictures of the baby so far (3 days, 6w 3d, 9w 3d)

Our first little miracle is getting so big!  On Sunday Rebecca will be 2 1/2!! (2 years, 6 months).  She is very active these days.  She loves to run.  It doesn't matter if it's outside or inside.  Fast is her favorite speed.  She also loves to jump and dance.  Anything that keeps her moving.  We've been rotating through various classical music lately.  She loves dancing to it.  She has started doing her "ballerina dance" to The Nutcracker.  Which consists of a lot of jumping :)  Sometimes she'll put her arms up.  And at the end she tries to curtsy.

Rebecca is also getting pretty good at kicking the soccer ball.  She dribbles all over the yard.  We're hoping to make it to a Calvin soccer game today if the weather is ok and Mommy has enough energy :P

We've been spending a fair amount of time outside with the wonderful weather lately.  Rebecca is really enjoying her playset.  She has become quite proficient at climbing the ladder.  She is also finally getting good use out of her slide.  We can tell Rebecca has been outside a lot and is quite rambunctious...she's got a scraped knee and scrapes on the palms of both hands.  But it doesn't slow her down.

On the calmer side of things Rebecca is quite the busy girl with her dolls and animals.  She carries on full conversations with them/through them.  It's fun to listen to.  She feeds them, changes them, "makes them better."  They do everything she does.  They go to the circus, the orchard, church, school, parades, etc.  She loves pretending to be a mommy.

Rebecca is also making great progress with her letters/sounds.  Now she likes to look at words and name all the letters.  And sometimes (depending on the book/pictures) she can even figure out what they say.  We go through the alphabet often, and she knows what sound most letters make.  Which will be a great skill to help her when she starts reading.  Rebecca is also getting much better at drawing/writing.  Her movement is much more controlled now.  She always tells you what she's drawing.  We're working on writing some letters.  Just last night on her own she wrote a D on her chalkboard.  And right away said, "I made a D!"  She doesn't quite have the R down, but we're working on it.

Rebecca still LOVES to read and has a great imagination.  We just finished our first Boxcar Children book yesterday.  And she's anxious to get started on the next one.  We also got a huge nursery rhyme book last Friday.  She already has a good portion of them memorized.

Rebecca is becoming very independent these days.  She used to be shy and cling to Mommy.  Not anymore!  She will hardly even sit on Mommy's lap for 1 minute in Kindermusik now.  She's the girl that runs around the room and wants to do her own thing.  I think she's already trying to be teacher's pet.  She won't sit by Mommy, but she always wants to sit by Miss Lynette and show her what she's doing :)  We're glad she's outgrowing her shyness.  But sometimes she's a little too independent :P  It can be tough to get her to hold our hands sometimes.  And she definitely has her own opinion about everything.  No idea where she would get such a strong sense of independence :P

We're enjoying every day with our first little miracle and eagely anticipating our second miracle.  God is good.