A change will do you good...

So I've been talking for a while now about how I wanted to cut my hair, like really cut my hair. I've been growing it out for a while and vowed that I would cut it soon after Finn was born. Well that never happened, so then I vowed I would cut my hair as soon as Greg got a job. Job came but hair still stayed. So this past week I fineally did it. Made an appointment and bit the bullet and chopped it all off and i.love.it!
So here are some pics becuase I know there are some of you out there who need proof that I reall did it. Because anyone who knows me know that I am a wimp when it comes to getting my hair cut and almost cry when 1/2 inch gets trimmed off! Well I ended up cutting of at least 10 inches! Anyway, just wanted to share my latest change!

A basket of fun!

Looking cute as ever!!

 

Dear friends who read this blog,

Here is a quick, and much needed, update.


Gus turned 2

Finn turned 5 months

I taste tested cookies all summer (my mom is making a cookie only cookbook!!)

and Greg landed an amazing job!!

This summer/fall has been so crazy but we have survived and are still alive and breathing.
We are loving being back in Utah and can't wait for the many adventures to come.

Oh and Happy Halloween!!

That's Finn with two N's and yes it is his middle name.

So my prediction from my last blog post was right--- My next post will be to introduce our newest addition and here he is!!!

Gary Finn Stockhoff (Finn) was born Thursday, June 10, 2010 and we are SO happy that he is here. Everything went well with the birth and we were so surprised when the dr held him up and all we could see was a full head of hair. My mom was able to be here for the birth and stay to help us pack and get ready to leave our quaint home of South Carolina, not to mention be the constant wrangler for Gus. She was a huge lifesaver with him and we are so thankful that she is here. I seriously don't know what I would have done. I think we would have all gone a little insane!!

Finn is such a sweet baby and a great sleeper, knock on wood, and most importantly takes a binky. Gus would have nothing to do with one and I love that Finn will take one. Gus is still adjusting to the babe but getting better every day. He does want to carry him from place to place and has quickly learned that whenever Finn cries he either needs to nurse or the binky and is sure to let us all know. 

So with out further ado here are some pics from our newest adventure.

And as an ending note, there may not be another post for a while as we are moving Wednesday morning. Wish us luck!!

The Haps

We've had a couple fun weekends so I thought I would share what we've been up to.

A few Fridays ago, after checking out the local farmers market that was very sad and lame, we took a dip in the pool with some of our friends. Gus was so excited to wear his suit and to play in the water. It did take him a minute to warm up to it but he totally did and when it was time to go a small tantrum followed. 

First steps into the pool and showing me where the water splashed on his head

Jack, Steve, Greg and Gus swimming away

Our friend Coleman had his birthday and celebrated it at the Greenville zoo and it could not have been more fun. Gus was in heaven and loved looking at all the animals. He especially loved the elephants, giraffe, the goat and the pig. Even now he still wants to look at the pics on the computer over and over and say what each animal is. 

All the kiddos at the party sporting the sweet animal print shades

Me and Gus and the lemurs

Riding the bear

Gus kept asking to hold Eliza's hand to which she gladly obliged

The infamous goat

As soon as we got in the car this happened

We also went to the Georgia Aquarium and this one pic pretty much sums up our time there. Gus loved seeing all the fish and probably could have stayed there for hours just watching them swim.

And just real quick, I'm down to my last couple weeks of pregnancy so the next post on here very well be the one introducing our new babe!!  Just thought I would throw that out there.

Gradu-What??

That's right everyone. Gregory Allen Stockhoff has done it. He has officially graduated from the Masters of Real Estate Development Program from Clemson University and I could not be more proud. He is now an official master of something so if you need help you know who to call!!

The beginning:

The middle:

The end:

C L E M S OOOOOOOO N!!!

Love you Greg!

Must be in the moneys

Sometimes when I'm sitting here at the computer I get a rare moment of peace when Gus is occupied with something else.  Occasionally he looks out the window that is right next to our little computer table or sometimes he gets all up in my craft stuff and makes a giant mess, but usually he is right next to me begging to climb on my lap so he can reach the mouse and keyboard.  It was a special day when I had actually about 10 minutes of quiet time on the computer without Gus begging to get up on my lap. I wondered what could have caused this miracle and when I looked over to the window this is what I saw.

 

Yes those are poker chips but he calls them moneys. I bought them with the intention that he would put them in and out of a can, like a homemade piggy bank.  He normally just dumps them all out on the ground and swishes them around on the floor and then runs away on to something else, so I was pleasantly surprised when I saw what he had done with them.  We were both so proud and I thought it was very clever and creative of him to figure it out!

Also, this past weekend we took Gus in for his second hair cut.  He did pretty good once he got to hold a balloon and sit on Greg's lap (instead of the chair, whatever works!)  He looks so grown up, like the little boy that he is.

And last but not least here is a pic of our new baby boy, aka my 33 week and 3 day belly.

(I'm trying to bend my knees so my whole body fits in the screen, hence the awkward posture)

First picture of brothers

Confessions of a pregnant 20 something...

So as I lay in bed last night trying to decide which side was more comfortable to fall asleep on I started confessing all these things to myself in my head that I've thought or felt during this pregnancy. I was like my own therapist and it felt good to get some of them off my chest. So then naturally my next thought was why not share these with my friends and fam via the blogosphere who haven't been able to share in my love/not-love relationship with this pregnancy.

Here goes.

Confession....

*Yes my bladder is the size of a quarter (had to get that one out there early)

*Yes I love feeling the baby perform complex dance moves inside me but am totally paranoid that he is going to kick so hard, breaking my water sending me into early labor

*Yes I am down to seeing my doc every two weeks (pretty soon it will be weekly!!)

*Yes it is hard for me to get up off the couch or the floor with out grunting

*Yes I rotate through the same three or four outfits

*Yes I sometimes still try and suck in my stomach when I'm trying to squeeze between two things

*Yes my belly button is really starting to poke out..like I'm pretty sure people give me a second glance in the store

*Yes every checker outer at Wal Mart asks what I'm having which then leads to either some personal advice or a story about someone they know/knew who had a boy

*Yes I longingly gaze at my non-maternity clothes dreaming about the day when we will be reunited

*Yes I occasionally snore (only when I'm prego though, it's a weird side effect)

*Yes when I am at home I am most likely wearing comfy pants

*Yes I have the pregnancy fatigue and feel like I could take a 2 hour nap every day

*Yes I get totally winded climbing the two flights of stairs leading to our apt

*Yes Gus points at my belly and says "baby" but I'm pretty sure he has no clue what is about to happen

*Yes I tell Greg that it's his turn to help/watch/play with Gus because I'm taking care of our other child

*Yes I have totally had pregnancy brain the entire time, forgetting things left and right

*Yes I would rather have snacks or any kind of dessert for lunch or dinner than real food

*Yes I daydream about what this babe will look like and all I can imagine is what Gus looks like

*Yes this pregnancy really has been a dream but I am getting so ready for this babe to be on the outside instead of the the in

And last the best...

*Yes I only have about 7 weeks left (maybe only 4.5 if he decides to come 2.5 weeks early like Gus did)

And yes I have totally been singing that Usher song "this is my confession" (that's a song right?) the whole time I've been typing this.

Drumroll please....

Well after some peer pressure from some of you I thought it was about time to update this old thing. I will agree that it has been a while, but what can I say, I can't always find the time to keep this thing up to date. With that out of the way here goes nothing. And side note, I was thinking if I keep my record up of only updating every couple months the next time we update we could be showing pics of the new babe!!! (only 8 weeks left!! Hallelujah) Well since so much time has passed I'll just catch up on the latest and greatest.
We celebrated Easter a few weeks ago and had such a fun time. We had a little Easter egg hunt with our friends and it was a huge success. All the kids loved finding the eggs but loved the candy in the eggs a little more. Gus was in heaven, going from one egg to the next, putting them in his basket that he carried like a purse. We practiced with him a few days before just in our living room and I think it paid off. Greg and I had to steer him in many different directions so that there would be eggs left for the other kids. We then had fun playing at the park. The dads played with the kids while the moms just enjoyed watching and gabbing away. Perfect.



The Gang

We followed up the egg hunt with a brunch Sunday morning before conference started. The food was tasty and the toys were plentiful, thanks to the Malcarne's and their super fun outside toys. We enjoyed good friends, good food and good weather!

This is how the kids did brunch

In keeping up with the spirit of updating, Greg is almost a college grad. He only has one week left of school and then graduates with his masters of real estate degree the first part of May. We are so excited and can hardly believe that our time out here in South Carolina is almost over. It feels like just yesterday we were moving out here and starting this new part of our lives. So much has happened since then and we are so excited to be moving on the next big adventure, whatever it may be!! I am so proud of Greg for accomplishing this.

Greg and his "mini-me"

Quick update on Gus. He is so funny and makes Greg and I laugh every day. He is getting so big and we just can't believe it. He recently started going to nursery and it doing pretty good. He is talking all the time and says new words that we don't even remember teaching him. He loves playing with his toys, especially any kind of ball. He loves carrying them around and can throw them so be prepared to catch anything that comes your way. He loves climbing up and over and down. I think we may need to invest in some sort of jungle gym because he is currently using our couch in place of one. He did finally get a hair cut a few weeks back and it made him look so grown up. His hair must grow pretty fast because he already needs another one. He loves to eat, most of the time, and is really into pickles right now. We were at a restaurant once and Greg gave him a bite of pickled okra just to see what he would do and he ended up eating the entire thing. I haven't even ever tried okra before. Gus is a braver man than I.
And last but certainly not least we will be adding this new baby brother to the mix in a few weeks. I get nervous every day about going into labor and always wonder when it will happen and just pray that if my water breaks, like it did with gus, that I am at home and not out in public. We are so excited to see what this babe will look like and excited to see what gus will look like when he meets him for the first time. Wish us luck!
Well that's about as much updating as I can do for today. I'm not going to promise when the next update will come but hopefully it will be sooner rather than later. Then I won't have to write another novel to catch everyone up!

Just some other cute pics for your viewing pleasure

BOY OH BOY!!!

The word is pretty much out so I thought it was time to make it official by posting it to the blog.
Baby #2 is on the way.
Baby #2 is a BOY! (Greg just needs one more for his father/son golfing foursome)
Baby #2 is due in June. (that sounds so far away but it's only 20 weeks, believe me I'm counting)

And if he's anything like baby #1 we are going to have an adventure on our hands!!



On a different note, my sister sent me this email yesterday and I thought it was amazing and worth sharing.

"so I was looking thru Startracks on People.com and Lola (her 4 year old daughter) is sitting here with me. When we got to this pix-she goes, "Hey, that's Greg!" I had to chuckle and think what a lucky lady Allice is!!"



All I have to say is Ahhhhhh Yeeeaaaaa!