23 Months- Love Bug

"JON!!! I have to go potty please"
1st- Jon? Really... and in the same tone I tend to use!!
2nd- I love you! What a gem you are!

"I have two daddy's" - where did she get this from!

(This is the first time I ever caught Ruthie "picking" her nose!

"It's Okay" "It's Okay"
(she says this everytime she has to go potty!)

"Daddy U" - she loves the letter U and has renamed it "Daddy U"

(My sweet little girl- she picked out her Hello Kitty Socks"

Forget Trick or Treat... my daughter goes right for the candy and says "treat!"
She had no trouble figuring out how to get candy!


(Cheese!)

"Ruthie, what would you like for breakfast?" Ruthie responds: "Toast, Yogurt, & Juice"

(My absolute favorite picture of my two favorite people)

"Where did T go?" - well, if you'd stop hiding it in-between the fridge and the freezer!!

"I'm a mess" - thanks mom for teaching her this!

"I want to sit in Piper's seat, no Ruthie's seat, no Piper's seat!" (make up your mind!)

I thought it would be fun to try and document some of the crazy things my silly daughter loves to say! She continues to grow (quickly). I would say that my 23 month old is completely potty-trained. Of course, I'm well aware at her age she can still have accidents, but we really don't have any to speak of. She is still learning to poop on the potty- but either makes the choice to hold it until naptime or she will go eventually in the toilet. Ruthie is very tall for her age. We just recently bought her some size 7 shoes that are just a tad big, but fit her better than her 6 1/2 size shoes! I can't believe how fast her feet are growing.

23 Months is going to be a very exciting month for my toddler leading up to her 2nd birthday. Ruthie and I are traveling to spend the weekend with Auntie H and Miles this coming weekend. I can't wait to get our kiddos together! Daddy and Uncle Nat are going to travel down to Richmond to celebrate Uncle Andrew's Birthday that same weekend! I also just signed Ruthie up for art classes that will meet every Wednesday morning at Cool Beans (where Jon and I had our engagement party) leading up to Christmas. I can't wait to see what she thinks! She loves having crayons and markers in her hand and of course, paint!! Also- November means THANKSGIVING and we are very excited for Jon to go on winter break and head down to North Carolina for the week to visit Gaga and Opa and then celebrate Thanksgiving with our entire family!! So exciting!!

Happy 23rd Month Birthday my sweet Love Bug! You were the cutest!! Everyone said so!

Think...

THINK

PINK

THINK

BLUE

...ONCE AGAIN.... THESE STUBE'S DON'T HAVE A CLUE

We are blessed. Although this little one (like his or her sister) decided to keep his or her gender a secret, we were blessed to watch as the ultrasound technician showed us our beautiful, healthy baby. I couldn't hold back tears as I watched my little bundle of joy hug me tight and not budge for the entire time! I cannot wait to meet him or her! February ... don't take your time getting here- we are excited to meet our baby!

So- at our last ultrasound (and the reason we had another one in the first place) the technician had trouble seeing my cervix (and some of the babies anatomy) and so suggested that I drink more water this time before arriving. I did as I was told, but once again, the technician had trouble seeing my cervix. She decided to do a internal ultrasound to just make sure everything looked okay. The ultrasound revealed that a piece of the placenta was covering my cervix. At this point, there is no need to panic, but they are going to do another ultrasound at my 28 week appointment to see if it's moved or not. Please pray! I would love to have a natural childbirth but importantly, with my blood disorder, having an issue with my placenta can be a scary thing- so again, please pray.

The Big 28 Week Appointment: as I said, at my next appointment I will have another ultrasound to check to see if the placenta has moved up BUT... there is more! Here in good ol' Central PA you have to do the blood glucose test twice and this appointment is the 2nd round of testing. Because I wasn't able to handle the sugary liquid earlier in my pregnancy and ended up with the 12 hour fast and then a high carb feast (eaten within 15 minutes) and two hours of blood work... I have to do the same test again. So... I have a two and a half hour appointment of ultrasounds, gestational diabetes blood work, and oh yeah... my wonderful beautiful Rhogam shot right in the bottom!! My oh my!! It's going to be a great morning... huh! Appointment is schedule on my daddy's birthday (Nov 29th) Even though it's going to be a rough morning, I can't wait- it's another time to check my babies progress and to hear his or her beautiful heartbeat. <3 style="font-weight: bold;">Baby Pics: here are the same pictures that were shown at the beginning of this blog with some of my thoughts...

My beautiful baby... I love looking at this photo. Although, you can't see much... you do get a great glimpse of his or her sweet little hand. Look at those beautiful little fingers. I am smiling so big right now as I stare at my baby.


Here is another great shot of my little peanut. Oh how I can't wait to snuggle you close. I love how he or she is snuggling up close to me. Look at his or her precious little face. Beautiful eyes, nose, and look at those lips!! Jon and I are very blessed. I can't stop looking at my child. I can't wait to hold you in my arms baby Stube.

Dear Sweet Child~ I love you so much. I am so excited to meet you and get to know you. As I write this, you are moving around inside me and letting me know you are here. I am absolutely loving how as I rock Ruthie right before bed- you have started poking around to let the both of us know you are there. I'm not so sure your sister is enjoying having this extra poke a part of her night night routine, but it makes me smile. Love you! ~Mommy

The Belly!

24 Weeks Pregnant

(Yes Kathryn- I took this picture at your house!)

My Beautiful Growing Belly

That's right!! I just wrote my beautiful growing belly. I will admit, it is still very hard for me to watch my "imperfect" figure turn into what at the end, feels like a beached whale, but I don't know if I've just had a change of heart, or maybe I just feel better this time around, but I am loving the transition of my semi flat stomach to this beautiful round bump of joy! I am carrying very differently this time around, which in most cases, has been absolutely wonderful with the one exception... I've never peed so much in my entire life!! I am 24 weeks now!! I can't believe how quickly this pregnancy is flying by. I am so very excited to meet this little one growing inside me, but don't mind waiting... I am having so much fun with my Ruthie here at home and it's still so hard for me to imagine sharing my time between the kiddos.

I know you can only do so much to prepare for each child- but I think it really just struck Jon and I the other night how busy are lives are about to become (as if they weren't crazy busy already!!) Jon and I were leaving our community group the other evening and we walked out with another couple who just recently added their second child to their wonderful family... as Jon was buckling Ruthie into her carseat and I was jumping into the car (it was chilly and I haven't been one to wear a jacket in the last several weeks!) I watched as the family of four struggled to get into the car... two children, two carseats, two parents... (thank goodness for two parents!!) Man! That is going to be the Stubes in a few 16 weeks!! Here we go... right!

Ultrasound: So, this Friday, the end of October is my next scheduled doctors appointment that just so happens to also be my next Ultrasound!! I am so excited to get another glimpse of this precious little one!! I honestly, could care less about the gender, but I can't wait to see if he or she is sucking his or her thumb. If he or she will wave.. all the little things that Ruthie did during her ultrasound that I didn't expect and just absolutely loved. Of course, if this little one decides to stay still for round two... who am I to complain, but as much moving around he/she does 24/7 ... I should get a nice little show!

Moving: The Stubes are happy to announce that we are officially OFFICIALLY moving THIS DECEMBER!! Jon and I are both very excited to share that we just signed a lease to a beautiful 4 bedroom town home! I cannot wait to get inside and start unpacking. I'm thankful that it's not before December 17th- as I look at my daily planner I realized just how busy we are for the next several weeks leading up to the big move! Of course, mom and dad- we are so thankful for the opportunity you gave us to share life with you this past year (and then some) and we sure are going to miss our evenings of cards... but I cannot wait to have all my stuff again!! hehe! It's my pre-Christmas opening all the boxes and seeing all the things we've had packed away. I can't wait to re-due Ruthie's room (big girl style) and to work on the nursery for this little one... it's the small things- but I'm thrilled!!

Letter to Baby Stube:

Dear Precious Little Girl or Boy- I can't believe we are only 16 weeks away from meeting you. I cannot wait for you to become an "official" part of this family. I don't think I'll be able to tell you enough how special you are to have so pretty amazing people in your lives to call your family! Of course, I know you are going to have your moments of wondering why you were stuck with parents like us and such a crazy sister... but most days, it is my prayer that you wake up thankful to be in this family and that you always know without a doubt that you are loved!!

I sit and I wonder who you are going to look like. Will you look just like your mommy (and so also look just like Ruthie) or will you share more features with your amazing daddy? All these questions and I can't wait to see!! I am interested to see when I look at your face for the first time whether I still believe you share Ruthie's nose (as I picture you do from staring at your ultrasound pictures). Looking forward to seeing you again this Friday during the ultrasound. Love you very much my baby Stube.

Love, Mommy

24 Weeks Pregnant!

(21 Weeks)


(5 weeks)

22 Months

22 Months Old!

The Stube Family LOVES Fall! What a wonderful season, and for many reasons! Ruthie is such a precious little girl. Blessing many with her beautiful smile and beautiful voice. She loves to sing for anyone who will listen... and if the song is just fast enough, she'll grab your hands and dance with you too! I know mommy's around the world probably think and say this... BUT!! Ruthie has such a fun personality. She continues to blossom and even when I don't think it's possible, she becomes even MORE fun!

For our first weekend this fall- we decided to take advantage of a beautiful sunny fall day and go to Harners Farm to try out our skills in a corn maze. We also thought it would be fun to pick out a pumpkin- but we ran out of time. (Don't worry- we're going to go with the Drakes ladies tomorrow!!) Ruthie had such a great time. Ruthie absolutely LOVED walking around the corn maze and finding her way to the different locations. Jonathan definitely thought he was the only one who could figure out the way... but Ruthie showed us very quickly that she was just as good... if not better!

(Ruthie loving all the orange pumpkins!)

(Ruthie working her way through the Corn Maze)
Harners Farm

Ruthie is continuing to grow so quickly and is towering over most two year olds!! As I said, she has a beautiful voice! We took her into Jon's lab where one of his colleagues was impressed with how well she sang and complimented her tone and pitch. She said that she was amazed ... most children sing mono-toned until age 4 or 5!! (Did I mention she is a Music Therapy Major!!)

Ruthie is almost completely accident free these days!! Potty-training has definitely been a huge success- although, very exhausting!! I'm so proud of her. One of the hardest obstacles (and really... I'd say there has been two) has been learning that we're going to hear her wake up anywhere between 5:30 and 6:30 screaming she has to go pee!! A great thing- but MAN!! We need that extra hour or two each morning. Thankfully, she does go back to sleep or atleast lays quietly until 7:30!! Truly our other obstacle has been pooping on the potty. She's now done that four times successfully, and doesn't seem as scared as what she was in the beginning. I try to keep her well hydrated so that it isn't so hard for her- but... there is only so much you can do when she does her best to hold it in until nap time! :)

Ruthie has also aced her colors of the Rainbow! She can point to different items around the house and tell you what they are and what color they are! Her favorite color seems to be green... but we'll see! Her vocabulary is off the charts these days. She's a little person who can hold a decent conversation with anyone. She loves to chat about her puppies (Pup Pup, Puppy 2, Puppy Ruff Ruff, and Big (or the Other One) She also very much enjoys playing Ring Around the Rosie!! She LOVES to fall down before the "correct" time.. but man, you should see the HUGE smile on her face as she grabs for your hands and starts to dance!! Nothing in the world is better than those moments!


23 Weeks ... I can't believe how quickly this pregnancy is going. I def love this time around so much more! Maybe it's the fact that I'm running around chasing a 22 month and have no time to really focus on what's going on with my body- but whatever it is... I'll take it! I feel the baby moving and kicking around pretty much around the clock! He or she def loves to move around right before I settle into bed- which makes falling asleep a little bit of a challenge. I can now show off my round growing belly! I have popped in the last week or so- it's so weird to think that only a week or so ago people were surprised to hear that 1) I was pregnant and 2) that I was over half way through!! Now it's not as much of a surprise!! hehe :)

Letter to my sweet children & more pics:

Dear Ruthie & Baby:

My life is changing drastically and so dramatically and I love it! I am so happy and proud to be your mommy Ruthie Mackenzie and I am so excited to meet you little Stube. Life is wonderful and although tough at times, daddy and I couldn't be more thrilled to be a part of your lives.

Ruthie: Keep showing off that gorgeous smile. You brighten the world. So many people compliment on how expressive you are and how much joy you bring them just by flashing that beautiful smile. I know daddy and I can't stop talking about you, even when we go out for a night without you. We have to laugh at all your cuteness. Some of the things you say and do are priceless. The other night, you asked mommy to sing you the ABC's. I sang it to you as sweetly as I could and when I finished... you said "good job mommy" and then turned to daddy and asked him to sing. When he finished you said "good job daddy" and then once again asked me to sing (as we were pulling into the driveway) I began singing again while daddy jumped out of the car to start getting you out of the ready... You looked right at me as I was singing my heart to you and said "get out mommy!" Cracked both me and your daddy up!! You are just to sweet and funny!!

Baby Stube: Keep growing inside me! We can't wait to meet you and give you the best sister in the entire world!! You are going to just LOVE your sister. She is going to spoil you with love. As I type this, she is sitting, resting on my leg. <3>


Pumpkin Patch: Here are so cute photos of my little pumpkin in the pumpkin patch. She had such a great time going around and choosing her perfect pumpkin. It really came to no surprise what you ended up picking out for you special pumpkin.... Please see below... Ruthie's Pumpkin!!

Ruthie's Pumpkin

Ruthie's favorite color seems to be green, so this should have been no surprise that she picked out her very own green pumpkin out of ALL the orange pumpkins around!!

Ruthie
Ways Fruit Farm
Pumpkin Patch

Jon & Ruthie
Ways Fruit Farm
Pumpkin Patch
Fall 2010

Daddy & Ruthie
Ways Fruit Farm
Pumpkin Patch
2009

My how much has changed in 1 year!!
Love you Ruthie

Ruthie in the Corn Maze
Listen... she'll say... "this way"

We are having a ....

We Are Having
A
...

What a fantastic day! Jonathan, Ruthie, and I just got home from our ultrasound appointment and celebration brunch at the Waffle Shop. We only were able to make two phone calls on the way home and then Jon had to rush off to work so we'll be calling the rest of our family tonight! As I have said, it has truly been an amazing day. I can't believe we are so close to getting to meet our son or daughter... and YES!! You read that right, son or daughter!! One thing I've learned about how I carry babies is that they LOVE to curl up in a tight ball and hang out with me. I feel him or her kicking me a bunch these days, but!!! when it comes to the anatomy scans- I have bashful babies!! Jon and I were def on the fence again with whether we as a couple wanted to know. Jon being yes, me being no! Our game time decision was to watch closely and see if we could tell ourselves and then have the lady write it down and put it in an envelope so if we decided later, we could find out! But!! This way is wonderful too!! We actually will have another shot at finding out this time around! Because this little one was so curled up, they weren't able to complete a couple of things on the scan, so they want to check me out again in 4 weeks. So- stay tuned... maybe we'll get an actual answer... but hey, maybe we won't! October 29th is the next ultrasound date!

( I can't get enough of looking at this beautiful baby!! )

I love being a mommy and I can't wait until this little one is in my arms. Ruthie seems to be getting it more and more that their is a baby coming! She was very excited about the ultrasound this morning and a few times said "there's the baby!" From everything the technician could see, we have a very healthy little baby. Everything is measuring correctly and the baby's heartbeat is strong! We met with the doctor afterwards for my appointment and got to talk about my options for the delivery of this little (hopefully little) one. Towards the end of this pregnancy they'll actually do a baby measurement and see how big they think the baby is and then we can decide from there. Obviously, the tests aren't as accurate as they would be right now (which by the way- the baby is measuring at 15 oz- that's almost 1 lb!!) (Ruthie is 30 lbs more!) but it will give us a rough idea. This just gives us the opportunity to schedule a c-section if we choose or go with the flow and see what happens. One more opportunity :) -Though I will say, as long as the baby is healthy, I fully anticipate trying to deliver naturally. They did stress again that if I want to have this child naturally I cannot be induced, so atleast I know I have some time if the baby isn't ready to come again on his or her due date.

All in all- it was a great appointment and I just feel like the luckiest woman alive to have this little one snuggled up comfortably inside me. Here is one last picture:

To the Left- Baby #2 and to the Right- Ruthie: 20 week ultrasound:

(Baby #2- 20 week ultrasound) (Ruthie- 20 week ultrasound)

After looking at these two side by side- I think they have the same button nose :) Is it just me, or do they look a lot alike?!?!

Love you Baby Stube- Mommy <3