Snow Days

As this post is titled "snow days", it's forecasted to be 91 degrees today :) 

We had two days in April where we had some snow. One day, we had enough to do a little sledding in the yard. Addison was so excited when she woke up that morning and was begging to go sledding! I had woke up at 3am and couldn't sleep so I started working. So I took a little break around 9am and took her outside. As you can see in her photos, she was so excited and had so much fun!!

But it didn't last long. we were out there about 30-45 minutes and then the snow was all gone. We had fun while it lasted! 

The other day it snowed, it was just some flurries. Not enough to go sledding. Addison had woken up from her nap and wanted to go outside. She told "I need to get my wiggles out". She actually has less wiggles than a normal 4 year old, haha. But we went out anyways. 

She ran around the yard saying "I am getting my wiggles out!!" Ryan came to the window at one point. I didn't know she had wiggles that day to begin with, but I guess she got them out :) ha!

Getting ready for baby

It was about two weeks before we were due so we decided we better get the car seat out and ready for the new baby! Ryan wanted to see how small the straps needed to be so we got Addison's doll to measure. We did think it through, it's an 18 in doll and Addison was born at 20 in :) 

Addison was pretty excited to practice snapping the doll in. She is convinced she will do so much to help us with the new baby! 

Ryan and Addison went out to the cars to install the bases. Addison showed me this photo when she came back in - ha! She was pretending to sleep like a baby :) 

Working from Home

Apparently the photos in my April folder on the computer got out of date order. So I posted about her birthday way earlier than I should of. Oh well. posts will be a little out of order for a while. 

Starting March 20, both Ryan and I started working from home due to Covid-19. Ryan worked upstairs in the "office". Yes this is the office, with an 8ft banquet table and a computer chair. It's the 4th bedroom upstairs. It's the catch-all room for all things I don't know where to put them :) I worked downstairs in the kitchen. I worked from the couch some and the kitchen table. Working from the couch was pretty relaxing as I was about 34 weeks pregnant when we started working from home. 

We started keeping Addison home with us on April 10. She really enjoyed "working" with us. We took turns watching her, but I took on most of the time with her. My job was really stressful for a few weeks as we figured out what was happening with students on campus and then events on campus. It was announced at ISU that employees were encouraged to work from home if possible starting March 17. I worked in the office the rest of that week and starting staying home after that. Students were off campus until April 3. Then the decision was made that students would be off campus until the end of the semester. 

Here she is working with Ryan. She has her crayons, stamps, markers, scissors and glue. She is loving cutting and gluing things right now. We also were practicing our letters.

A few things about how our world changed temporarily for you to remember in the future:
- Restaurants and bars closed. Many places frantically started trying to offer carry-out to stay afloat.
- Malls and stores closed. Only essential stores were allowed to stay open. Places like grocery stores, Target, Walmart, and then home improvement stores stayed open.
- Hair salons were closed - this really affected people's routines - ha!
- Dentists offices were closed unless emergency. Doctor's visits were modified.
   My doctor's office went to seeing expecting mom's in person every other visit. They closed one office and left one open. I was still going every week since I was close to delivery. No one could go with me. Many doctor's started doing tele-health and people have really liked that.
- Churches closed and starting broadcasting services online.
- Family gatherings were canceled (for most people). Nolan's birthday party was canceled and so was your's. We spent Easter by ourselves as well.
- People use Zoom like crazy. Zoom is a conference call system. Schools, workplaces, and families were using Zoom to stay in touch.
- Companies halted travel and vacations everywhere are canceled. You get asked when going to the doctor if you have traveled out of the country/state or have come in contact with someone who has.
- All sports are canceled. Basketball, baseball, everything. Pro and high school. The NFL draft was done remotely, which was a big deal. Everyone watched it as it was the only thing sports related airing. Your dad and I did watch a really interesting documentary on the Chicago Bulls and Michael Jordan :)
- Disney started pushing new movies out sooner than planned and online only to entertain people while quarantined. News stations and live TV is now done remotely. News anchors are broadcasting from their living rooms.
- Many people are out of jobs. Your dad and I have both worried about our jobs as they are affected by this. We had a couple of weeks where we were quite worried we could both end up unemployed and have a new baby! But we think your dad is okay now. I'm still worried about returning from maternity leave.

Ryan went to Fareway once per week for groceries. I stayed home to keep me and the baby safe. Addison was pretty distraught that we had to stay home. She loves to go places (and doesn't care where) so this was hard on her. We knew keeping her home from school would be especially hard. But she did really good for a while. I tried to keep things exciting for her.

There were shortages on many things in the country. When Covid-19 started to get serious here, people started stocking up and hoarding things. Like toilet paper. It's quite the joke of the pandemic. It's shear craziness. Toilet paper went flying off the shelves. It's June 22, and it's still hard to find in stores. We ran out about the first of June and had to buy some :) I am more worried about the lack of good peanut butter on the shelves - ha!

Grocery stores are picked over bad. And it's crazy some of the things that are gone. Like peanut butter, all baking supplies, meat, etc. There is a shortage on flour and yeast because people think they will have to start baking their own bread. There is a huge shortage on medical equipment and personal protective equipment for those treating infected patients. Price gouging is happening. Hand sanitizers is listed at $40 a bottle online (generally like $2 or $3).

It's a scary time. We have no idea what would happen when this came to the US. Other countries have shut down as well. It originated in China. Italy was hit really really hard. We selfishly are thankful that we had our trip to Italy last year!

I personally was and am still quite scared by this whole thing. I first worried about you and myself (while pregnant) getting sick. We never left the house, unless we just drove around in the car. I was and am still worried about taking something to my mom as she is high risk. And then also my uncle Gary as he is very very high risk and is still working with Grandpa in the field. We didn't see anyone from our family for what felt like forever!

I know you will learn about all this in school, but I thought I would give an update from our view. I will continue with more tidbits I'm sure in coming posts!

A few days at the farm

Addison was so excited to go spend a few days at the farm! It's been a long time since she had been there. She got to ride in the buddy seat for a while. My dad said she took a little snooze there too. I can remember taking books in the tractor with my dad and falling asleep too :) I think every farm kid has taken tractor naps! Don't mind her awkward smile......

She was so excited to ride in a tractor again. Note the dress and the cowboy boots. She loves that dress because it has pockets :) 

This is one of her favorite activities at Grandma Rita's Ames House. And it would top the list for Grandma's least favorite activities. Ha! Brayden had this little car that you push. Addison's feet could touch the ground but she lifts them so you can push her. She has always loved this thing and is probably too big for it now. Now when my mom pushes her, she makes her stop for gas, stop at Target for groceries, etc. The walk takes much longer. haha! 

Birthday Gifts

Addison is really into crafts right now so I bought her a Trolls necklace kit. There are 5 different strings where she can make her own necklace. 

She REALLY wanted to eat out on the deck. We asked what she wanted for her birthday dinner and she said "corn dogs". We were thinking we would order Casey's pizza, but she really wanted corn dogs. So that's what she got! 

I bought her a small kite so we tried that out that night. She thought that was pretty fun. She didn't want to fly it, she just ran around yelling "Get back here kite!!" and then she would laugh. She thought it was so fun. I'm sure people 3 blocks away heard her yelling. 

Our picture at 38 weeks. I was feeling pretty good. I felt better once I stopped trying to do prenatal workouts or walking on the treadmill. Apparently I was trying to do too much, I was getting pretty sore. You can see my dog Bullet in the picture :) Addison enjoys pretending to be a dog. I told her if I had a dog, I would name it Bullet. That's the name my mom had come up with after we named Rocky and JJ, so that was the first name that came to mind. So every stuffed dog or dog toy she has, she tells me it's name is Bullet :) She keeps saying "I wish we could have a dog some day", and I just tell her she has to ask her dad - ha! 

Turning 4 in Quarantine

Addison's 4th birthday was Wednesday, April 22. She was so excited for her birthday this year. Starting April 1, she crossed off a square on our calendar each day. She had a countdown to the big day. If you asked her what she wanted for her birthday, she would tell you "A cake, cupcakes, cookies, a haircut, and the same two balloons she had last year". She really wanted a haircut for her birthday, but she didn't get one (all the hair cut places were closed due to Covid-19!). She has not had her first haircut yet :)

Well, I could fulfill one wish. She could have cupcakes! Yup, we bought a white cake mix and we made our own cupcakes. Addison was SO EXCITED for these cupcakes. 

She probably told me 10 times that day "Today's my birthday and I'm 4 years old" and she probably asked 25 times "Mom, when am I gonna have a cupcake?" She about drove me crazy! And that was before lunch....... 

She got one trick candle, she thought that was pretty funny. We had white frosting, so I let her pick which colors of food coloring she wanted to dye the frosting. She thought that was pretty cool. And then she picked the sprinkles too. She had purple and blue cupcakes. She was so excited we had 20 cupcakes. We didn't eat them all that day, we put some in the freezer. She gets pretty excited when we get one out for her. 

We got a few Trolls items to decorate the kitchen and Ryan blew up a few balloons for her. She loves balloons. Oh yea, and she picked out her hat too. I had a few choices for her but that was what she wore last year (and she remembered) so she wanted it again. It's from our wedding, on the back side it says Happy New Year - ha! 

Stepping Stone Creation

Well, since we are staying home I figured we could catch up on some projects :) Addison got this kit to make her own stepping stone from the Prescott's last year for her birthday. Figured it was the perfect time to do it before the baby came! Addison is totally into "projects" right now. I can make anything a "project" and she's excited! I told her one morning we were going to make this stone and she asked me probably 30 times that day when we were going to do it.

First we had to mix the cement, then pour it into the plastic frame. They provided us with a mix of stones that Addison could put in. And they gave us little letter stencils so we could write in it. And of course we had to put her handprint in it! Growing up, whenever cement was poured at the farm, we would put our handprint and initials in it. It makes me a little sad Addison won't have that 'farm kid memory', but I guess a stepping stone will have to do!

We asked her what else she wanted to write on her stone and she said "Go Cyclones" :) She loved this little project. We put it on the front step and every time we go outside, she checks to see if her hand still fits - ha!

Canceled Trip :(

This was a sad week in March for us. We had to cancel our trip to Florida. We were planning to go with the Prescotts and my parents. But due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus, we made the difficult decision to cancel the trip. We were severely disappointed! We had really been looking forward to this trip. Addison was SO EXCITED to go back and practice what she learned in swimming lessons. I was excited to be 34 weeks pregnant and get in the pool to be weightless - haha! And it would have been our last trip before the baby. But we decided we better be safe as we had no idea was in store for the country. 

We were set to leave on March 20. On March 12, ISU announced students would not be returning to campus for classes until the beginning of April. Classes would be online after spring break. Events began canceling at my work. The Big 12 Tournament canceled on Thursday, which meant ISU is still the reigning champ of the tournament - ha! My work announced on March 17 that they encourage employees to work from home if able. Ryan's started working from home March 20. It was a crazy, unknown situation that was very stressful for me at work with shutting down the building to events. At that time in March, we had no idea how the next month(s) would play out. Looking back, my work should have started planning sooner for further out (I would like to know that myself and the building manager did try to push them for better planning, haha). More to come on how this crazy situation affected us :)  

But all our plans were canceled so we had more time to hangout. I was looking forward to a few relaxing weeks prior to the baby. We used Kelly's Disney Plus membership and watched Frozen 2 one night. Addison was pretty excited. I would say I was very disappointed. It wasn't even half as good as the first one. It was hard to follow and the songs were terrible. Glad we didn't buy it or go to the theater! But Addison was happy and I guess that's all that matters....haha! 

I was pretty excited about the pinwheel we found this year for my Grandpa Julius' grave. He would have loved this one. It will be 10 years this summer since he passed. I've thought of him a few times lately, he used to say that all babies look the same and he could never tell if it was a girl or a boy (in conversations about his great grandkids). Ryan and other people have said "all babies look the same" lately and that makes me think of Grandpa and smile. I've also thought of him since I've been at home during the day and Young and the Restless comes on. I quit recording it years ago but I have it on during the day. Don't worry Grandpa, the stories are still repeating themselves and Phyllis (on the show, not Grandma) is still as nasty as ever. He used to get a kick out of Phyllis and her shenanigans - haha! I think my dad is embarrassed that my grandpa watched a soap opera :) 

Well speaking of Grandpa's...... I told Addison that I used to play these games with her Grandpa. We played Hi-Ho Cherry-O and Cootie. Looking back, I wonder if my dad played by the rules on Cootie.....you are supposed to get all the items in order. So you roll until you get a 1 for the body. Then you roll for a 2 for the head. It takes FOREVER that way!! We now play that you pick up whatever item you roll, which means you could have some feet before a body but that's okay :)

And our weekly picture, now listing "Covid-19 Quarantine". We started our quarantine this week. At that time, we never expected it to be June and still in quarantine.......

Making some bunnies

Another one of my many projects..... we made some bunny canvas prints for Easter. We made one for ourselves and one for Grandma Rita. Addison LOVES making these little projects with her footprints. I apparently didn't take a photo of the finished project!

Addison's first time at the Bondurant Public Library. I checked out a few books for her and I. I thought she would be more excited to pick out her own books, she didn't care at all. She sat in the chair and read to "her class" for about 1 minute and then she wanted to try to play on the computers. I realize I should take her back there this summer and teach her how to play the games on the computers! 

Addison was helping Ryan make some green beer on St. Paddy's Day. Wild day at the Lents house :)

Here I was at 33 weeks. I was pretty nervous about going early this time (I didn't). Nolan coming so early last year really gave me some anxiety!

New bed, new room

In the beginning of March, Addison got a new bed and a new room :) This room was our guest bedroom. We had a different bed frame in there, but I wanted one with storage since we didn't have room for dresser in that room. So we picked out a bed and had it delivered. Addison was SO excited! 

And she had no issues giving up her old bed and bedroom to the baby. Maybe that's because she was almost 4 and still sleeping in a toddler bed :) ha!

 She had to crawl in and pretend to be a baby. Then she was climbing on the outside and telling us that she was going to help with the baby when it cries.

She was pretending Scout was a baby and she was reaching in to get him when he was crying. She was showing us how much of a help she can be with the new baby :) Haha!

Do I have to shower??

Well now it's June 1st and I'm still not caught up! But I am at least in March now :) 

So we have had many parenting fails with Addison. This is one. She is almost 4 and terrified of taking a shower. She actually has never taken a shower. We told her she has to learn how to take a shower before we can go back to Florida. There is no tub in Florida and she is too big for the sink - ha! So we were practicing taking a shower because we had a trip scheduled in March. So we told her we would practice wearing swim suits - haha! It looks like it went well from this photo. It was not a smooth event... there were tears. Ha! 

Another night at swimming. We did not master blowing bubbles in the water (another parenting fail for not putting her in lessons sooner). But she is now determined she will learn before our next trip. ha! 

I love that she likes to play baseball :) 

Oh this crazy girl. She told me on this day that she was a White Sox Fan. I need to not leave her alone with her dad - haha! Just kidding :) She just likes this jersey because it has buttons!