Dangerous Wonder

Tonight I took Dean to the park for what is beginning to be a nightly ritual again. Now that it's cooler and I'm getting better at being done with my "chores" for the day before dinner, I am trying to take a daily walk. It's good exercise for me and Dean loves being outside, especially when we end up at the park where he can swing. Tonight I decided after swinging for awhile to let him walk around a little. I've been noticing that, though he walks along things, I don't walk WITH him very much. So why not try at the park right? He really does love to walk, but rarely has enough room to get worn out. As we were walking along the sidewalk we came upon this couple and their two dogs. Now of all the animals in the world, (or of the ones he's encountered) Dean loves dogs the most. It's funny to me how a loud sneeze or sharp voice can make him dissolve into a pile of tears, but the loud menacing bark of a dog doesn't faze him. Anyway, as we came upon these dogs he purposely let go of one of my hands and signed the word "dog". I couldn't believe it! I've been trying to get him to use sign language for the last 8 months and all I've gotten is a blank stare. For his birthday I did get him the "Baby Signing Times" video which he loves! It's the one time of day that he'll sit still for more then 5 min. I wasn't really sure though if the signs that they are teaching him were really getting through. Guess I was wrong! Honestly I had kind of given up and was just letting him watch the video when I needed a few minutes of him being quiet. Now if I can only get him to use signs related to proper table manners such as please, thank you, more, drink, etc. (sigh) Well one small step at a time! :)

I apologize for not posting more. I religiously check others blogs to see if they've updated, but haven't been so good about updating mine. My excuse is that there doesn't seem much to blog about. Ofcourse when I really sit and think about it life with a toddler is always full of events. Aug 8-12 we(Dean and I) spent time in Greeley with my family, especially my Grandma and Grandpa. It was nice to see everyone and have them see Dean. He took a little while to warm up, but after a few days seemed right at home. It was rather exhausting for me though to be a "single parent". It definitely made me appreciate Kyle more. Dean is so much more active these days and with my expanding belly I just can't keep up. He isn't walking quite yet, but walks as he holds onto anything including walls. He is letting us "walk" him too now! It shouldn't be too much longer. :) Dean is also developing quite a stubborn streak. He has a definite opinion about most things and isn't afraid to vocalize that. I am still working with him on using sign language. He likes to watch his Signing Time video, but still isn't using the signs. He does use some form of the words, so I guess thats something. Kyle and I are convinced that he understands far more then he lets on or is able to communicate. He keeps me on my knees praying for wisdom and patience! :)

This past weekend I went "garage saleing" to find a dresser for Abi. I ended up just perusing the ARC and found a nice six drawer dresser that just needed some paint for $10! I love the ARC. Kyle painted it white and we are replacing the handles with some basic white ones. It should turn out great. It's nice to see Abi's room coming together.

Another new thing in my life is a very part time job I've taken on as a Mystery Shopper. I signed up with a couple of companies online and have an assignment coming up. I love the flexibility to choose when and where I take assignments and the relative ease to complete them. You don't make a lot of money, but it's nice to have a little spending money now and then. Besides it gives me something outside the home to focus on. Kyle likes the advantage of some "free" dates!

I'll update more after my 32 wk appt this week. I anticipate all good news as I've been feeling pretty good and having no trouble with swelling. Abi seems smaller then Dean, though at this stage even a "smaller" baby can feel big!

After some time, Kyle and I have finally agreed on our choice of how to abbreviate Abigail's first name. There are a million different ways and while Abigail is a rather common and popular name, I wanted to give it a uniqueness in how it is abbreviated. So here it is.... Abi! It seems fairly simple, yet not to cutesy so that she can continue to use it when she is older. We also finished painting her room this weekend (that is Kyle did :) ). Now I get to decorate. It turned out really well. I was a little nervous as I don't have a lot of confidence in my interior decorating skills, but it really is warm and inviting without being too loud or too dark. I can't wait to put up pics when it is all done!

Kyle came home after being gone for 5 days on Thursday so we were able to have a productive and busy weekend together. We got a lot of the little not so important but annoying chores out of the way this weekend. You know, things like cleaning out the car and garage. It's not vital to anything, but sure helps me FEEL better. We also started working on Abi's room. I am going to be 30 weeks pregnant tomorrow, so I guess it was about time for us to get moving. We have the whole room primed and hopefully this week will get the colors on. Three of the four walls will be a light beige color and the fourth wall will be an accent of rose/plum. I hope it looks as good as it does in my head! I'll be sure to take pics once we are done. I have been searching for weeks now for an affordable crib for Abi with little true success. So we have decided to borrow Grammie's bassinet for awhile and buy ourselves some time. It will still be in Abi's bedroom as we have no room in our room for it, but at least it's some place for her to sleep.

Oh... praise report!!! We finally got a renter in our house this past weekend too! Just in time for us to pay the August mortgage too. God's timing is never late, but is never our's either! Our renter is actually interested in one day buying the property too! We will leave the details to God, but it does give us reason to hope!

Dean is getting braver about his mobility everyday. He is letting us "walk" him around and has even taken to hanging on to the walls while he walks. It shouldn't be too much longer now. We just have to convince him not to cry everytime he falls!:) This past weekend he was brave enough to spend the entire church service in the nursery and enjoyed it until he went down the little slide they had head first and got rug burn on his forehead. Ah! The joys of little boys!

Dean's new found love is standing at low windows or doors and talking to the world. He is so much more bold by himself then around others!