The Joys of Unpacking

So we have been busy this weekend. We figured with Ryker's arrival less than a month away we should probably get busy unpacking. It had been way to hot and I was just to tired after summer school.  I told Kyle that we had to buckle down and do it otherwise I would just stress the entire time I was in the hospital.
We have awesome friends that are going to be helping us with Gunnar when I go to the hospital and I would like to have everything ready for them. After working as hard as a 36 1/2 week pregnant woman can, we got a lot done this weekend. If I work hard I think I can finish tomorrow during Gunnar's nap. Gunnar has been a real trooper through it all and in a sense had to be our hostage. Everything was a disaster and pretty much off limits for little people. We tried taking turns entertaining him, but he just wanted to be free and roam around his home (can't say that I blame him). Hopefully tonight when he goes to bed we can get the boxes to recycling, the trash taken out, and the car loaded up with the stuff we are donating to Free-Cycle or the Thrift Store.
Here are a few pictures...
Yesterday we took a break from packing and went to our friends house for a BBQ. Gunnar was shy for about the first 5 minutes then he enjoyed all the attention he got. He is never lacking for love with the Muckelbauer's around (They will be taking care of Gunnar when I am in the hospital). Apparently no one was looking when I was taking pictures and I was to distracted to notice.

Some of the boxes to be taken to recycling...

 Free Cycle Items...

I believe this is just about the last of what needs unpacked (plus some items our friend Matt left behind because they wouldn't fit in his suitcase) and it is in the office right now. We are hoping to get to it tomorrow. I also have to sort some clothes and finish the mass amounts of laundry, but then we will be finished!!!

Kyle's solution for letting Gunnar roam free while we work. With socks on his hands he couldn't empty the boxes for us or carry pick up the things we had just put away. Obviously Gunnar really liked this...

While he didn't like the socks, he does like hiding and climbing in every box or large tupperware....

Hopefully by the end of this week we can get some pictures up of the new place of us all moved in. Only time will tell. I got most of our pictures and decorations hung up today, it is amazing how much more it feels like 'home' now!

Name Game

Drumroll please.....I think we may have a name.
Kyle and I have put a lot of thought into a name for our coming arrival. Having a name picked out takes a lot of stress off of me, and I like to be able to call my baby by name even before he is born.
So, we have decided on the first name Ryker. Neither of us are Danish or Dutch, but here is a low-down on the meaning....Danish-strong power, hardy power or Dutch-to become rich. We didn't pick the name because of the meaning, but just because we liked it and thought it fit. This naming business is hard!!!!
So, we have a first name and a last name (which was pretty easy to come up with), but we are still up in the air with a middle name. Gunnar's middle name is Max, after Kyle's grandfather. We would like Ryker to have a family middle name as well. Since we haven't been using family names for first names it is important to us to use them as middle names. So you all get to help us out a bit. Now, not many people leave comments anymore, so sad, but I do hope you will take the time to vote on our poll....we don't have much time before the little guy's arrival!!!

Ryker ? Pettit

35 weeks

I can't believe I am already 35 weeks. Most days I feel like I am well past the 40 weeks, but I am hanging in there...or should I say baby boy is hanging in there.
I went to the doctor yesterday and was told the baby has dropped and is ready, now my body just has to get ready. Doctor Schwind said at this point he is still going to say I have 5 more weeks, but he said it could change at any moment, and I should only travel inside of Bavaria just in case we need to get back. According to their measurements the baby is 2800g. which is a little over 6 lbs and he said I should have around an 8lb baby around 40 weeks. This is right around where they said Gunnar was at 35 weeks into my pregnancy with him, and he ended up weighing only 2500g when he was born, so I remind myself this is only a estimate, and sometimes a pretty far-fetched estimate at that.
It is hot, and I am tired, but other than that okay and I really just wish the boxes would unpack themselves. Teaching summer school has been a lot of fun, but I am thankful there is only 2 more days. I really had an awesome class and never had any problems with them. This week I have only had 6 students which totally rocks!
Gunnar's daycare experience at the Child Development Center has been fairly positive... He was exposed to hand, foot, and mouth disease and while he got another strange rash he never got the HFM disease. He had a constant runny nose, he now thinks hitting is pretty funny, and is down to one instead of two naps a day (but it is a 3 hour nap, today 4 hours, so I can deal), but like I said over all a good experience.  I must say though I haven't figured out what is more sad for me as his mom, that fact that the first two weeks he would scream and cry-out for me when I left him, or the last two weeks the fact that he doesn't even give a sad lip or look back to say bye when I leave him, we go in and he is off and playing. I feel so unloved, but he always runs into my arms when it comes time to pick him up...thank goodness.
Here are some pictures from today and the ultrasound picture from yesterday.
Baby Boy around 35 weeks....

One tired momma who is 35 weeks pregnant, mom of a 14 month old, teacher of a k-2 summer school class, has been attempting to stay cool in the 94 degree weather with no a/c, and has been up since 4:45am as she had to drop her hubby off to catch a bus and Gunnar decided that he didn't need to go back to sleep after the short car ride.

Here is Gunnar and his tired daddy having story time before bed.

Man's Best Friend

or in this case, little boy's best friend....

Unfortunately I don't think the feelings are mutual. While Suesse may not love Gunnar as much as he loves her, she tolerates him and is protective of him. She lets Gunnar pull her hair, rearrange her face, lay on top of her, take her bones and toys away, hold her face and she lets him yell right in her ears. On rare occasion we will even see her snuggle with him on the dog pillow...Gunnar loves to lay on the dog pillow and they are pretty good at sharing their food with each other. Gunnar likes her dog food (icky) and she loves that he shares his snacks and dinner with her. Suesse only growls at him when she is really being hurt and I am sure she will appreciate when Gunnar has mastered petting her gently (he knows how to do this, he just chooses to not always practice gentle touches). She has never snapped at him, and he really does push her luck with her. She is a very good dog.
But....Suesse does something else. This is a recent development and I am not sure what is up. This last week she has gone in his room and pooped twice. Suesse has only pooped in the house two other times, once when we first brought her home from the pound and it was the instant we walked in the door and she was very sick. House training her was easy and we never had to deal with poop again after the first time, just the pee. Then our dog-sitting fell through when we had an overnight trip planned and she couldn't hang on about 6 months ago....she somehow managed to get in Gunnar's crib and poop like 100 times in there (it was a nightmare). But those have been her only two pooping accidents in the 4 years we have had her...until this past week. Not sure why she chooses Gunnar's room to do this, but I have this strange feeling she is getting back at him for all the torturing he does to her...YUCK!

Wasserkuppe

In German Wasserkuppe means "water peak." I'm not exactly sure where the water was, but I had no problem finding the sunshine. Today we tagged along with Outdoor Recreation and went to Wasserkuppe which is highest peak in the Rhön Mountains. It is only about a 45 minute drive from our home.
Wasserkuppe has a lot of aviation history and there were tons of glider planes taking off and were fun to watch. But we came to Wasserkyppe for the alpine roller coaster. Kyle and I have ridden these before and they are way to much fun. Here is a link to a youtube video of someone going down the mountain, hopefully whatever they are saying in German is acceptable. Kyle usually has a no braking rule, but says he really thinks this would be a challenge to go down without ever using it. Can you believe they let him take Gunnar? Or maybe it is more shocking that I let him take Gunnar! Gunnar sat inbetween Kyle's legs, had his own seat belt and loved the fast ride. I sat and prayed for his safety the 10 minutes they were gone. Kyle convinced me I should go. Now, I didn't see anything saying pregnant women were not allowed, so I went against my common sense and caved to the peer pressure. This really is not a good idea for someone who is almost 34 weeks pregnant. I am thankful it didn't send me into labor, it was a rough and uncomfortable ride. After riding the big coaster we took Gunnar on the kiddie one. It was pretty lame, but he just sat back and chilled. He pretty much likes anything that moves.
Gunnar and Kyle before the ride...

Me at the start, wishing there was a way to turn back.

I survived, and Gunnar survived going down with his daddy. But it is almost to hot to smile.

Gunnar chilling on the kiddie apline coaster

One of our views we got to take in during the kiddie ride.

Once everyone got there fill of roller coasters we headed to an outdoor museum. It was really cool and had buildings that dated back to the 1600's but it was WAY to hot to enjoy. We lived for the shade and enjoyed the ice cold water in the creek. It was super cold, but felt super good on our feet.

 We worked hard to keep Gunnar cool. No shirt, eating a snack, and chilling in the shade. He also got covered in the SPF 50 every 30 minutes or so. That blonde hair and blue eyes make me nervous. What a life, I wish I could have been pushed around like him.

After his snack he joined Kyle in the creek. Not sure why the pictures didn't turn out, but here is the best one.

After roasting two hours at the museum we went to Kruezburg Monastery. There we ate to much and just tried to stay cool. We spent most the time in the shade as Gunnar was napping, when he woke up I took him to see the Saint Bernards that are at the monastery and then he found a fountain that after I snapped the picture he decided was a kiddie pool.

 After about a 9 hour day touring the countryside we got home. Gunnar didn't eat as he was napping so we got some food in him, then Gunnar and Kyle had their nightly rough housing, then Kyle bathed Gunnar, then I put him to bed. We are trying to stay cool inside now, but when we pulled up at 6ish it was 98 degrees outside. With no a/c the place is hard to keep cool, even when living like bats. I am thankful we are on the first floor, but I often consider sleeping in the basement with the spiders.
Not sure what is up with the camera, but this is what it looks like in our livingroom almost everynight before bath time.

Another Update

I will attempt to give an update. I am been a real slacker at blogging lately. Kyle is finally home!!! I hope he sticks around for a while. He was gone for 3 days at a paintball certification course to instruct and run paintball fields, then after being home less than 24 hours was off to Italy enjoying the Mediterranean Sea. He went with middle school students who are part of our Club Beyond (same organization as Young Life) group here on post. He saw and did lots of things that I am totally jealous of, and will attempt to make him blog about. :)
Kyle with a paintball wound. His entire body was covered with these...thanks Ryan (the professional paintball player/instructor of the course).

Gunnar and I had a busy week. I started teaching students at summer school and he had his first week at the Child Development Center. WOW, was the first day ever rough. We both were almost hysterically crying. Thank goodness I am pregnant and have an excuse for being extra emotional. He is only there for about 4 hours, and while he isn't excited about it, he doesn't scream to loudly when I leave him now. It really messed up his sleeping schedule, but I think we are finally getting our naps straightened back out.
I have the perfect summer school class (knock on wood). They listen, and do exactly as told. They are just great and are making this a fun and enjoyable experience. Today was the first day I had to get after anyone and it was nothing major. I only have 10 students and the curriculum is pretty fun which helps.
Kyle got home Sunday morning from Italy at about 6am. Then at 8:30am Kyle and I dropped Gunnar off with our awesome friend Gina and drove 4 hours to Oberammergau. We arrived around 12:30 and as soon as we walked in our hotels doors the hostess fed us lunch. We then had about 45 minutes to walk to the play, the Passion Play. We forgot our script, so were attempting for the next three hours to follow  along as it was all in German. After 3 hours we got a 2 hour break for dinner, then back to another 3 hours of play. This time we had our script and it was much easier to follow along. We both loved the play and the experience. It isn't necessarily a fun play to watch but is very powerful and meaningful.
Here is a little background information on the play from their official website...
"Gripped by war, poverty and plague, the villagers of Oberammergau, in Bavaria, southern Germany vowed to put on a 'passion play' every ten years…
That was back in 1633. They survived, and performed the first Oberammergau Passion Play in 1634. Ever since, their descendants have carried out that pledge.
For the past four centuries the tradition has continued, every ten years. Only villagers have been allowed to take part. And that is what will happen yet again in 2010, from 15th May until 3rd October.
They devote a year of their lives to re-enacting the life, death and resurrection of Christ.
All performers are laymen and pursue their usual careers as wood carvers, house wives and so forth...
In real life for instance Jesus is a psychologist and Mary Magdalene works as a flight attendant.
Like everyone else in the village, 'Jesus' and 'Mary' are ordinary people. By taking on these roles, they are fulfilling the promise to God made by their ancestors, celebrating their faith and sharing it with the world...
...as Oberammergauers have for some 375 years."
A picture of a costume from a previous play (no photos are allowed at all inside the stage area). 

A picture of the mountain that overlooks the city.

The drive down the mountain was very rainy. But we stopped to enjoy the fog coming up off the river.

We got back to our hotel around 11pm and I slept like a baby. I didn't even have to get up to pee until after 6am....it was AWESOME. After breakfast we headed to Gramisch area where we got some fuel and then went to one of our favorite places Eibsee (a lake a the base of the mountains). We shared a snitzel for lunch then walked maybe a mile and just enjoyed each's company sitting on the edge of the lake.
Kyle is always making me pose for pictures...so I returned the favor. He is pointing at a tiny fish, do you see it?

Us enjoying the lake.

Now we are back home, Gunnar is home, Suesse is home, and we are all enjoying time together as a family. With Kyle home it is much easier to work on getting unpacked. I am definitely ready to be done living out of boxes.

Before I forget, today I also went to the doctor. Everything is looking good and the baby is healthy. During the ultrasound my doctor said my baby is always such a good model for him and fun to watch. But today my baby was asleep. Dr. Schwind said "come on little boy, give us a show." It was as if on cue my poor baby got really sad. It looked like he was just crying away. My doctor told me to make him happy. I ask if that was possible and he just said, "I have no idea, you are his mommy." Well my efforts didn't work, and instead my doctor loved my sad faced baby and was printing tons of pictures out for his wall...to put next to the smiling babies. So here is my sad boy...once again our scanner is not hooked up and the camera was about to die, so this is the best you are going to get...

Pictures

So I found the camera cord in a search for some library items that were over-due but packed away in boxes. So here are a few pictures...

I forgot to share that Kyle is getting his scuba diving certification. Saturday was his last pool class and Gunnar and I got go along. Gunnar loves swimming. The water was a little cold and he didn't seem to enjoy it at first, but after a short break with juice and crackers he became fearless. He would have run right into the water if I wouldn't have stopped him.

Here is a picture of Gunnar's idea of helping us move...

And the latest picture we have of baby #2 at about 30 weeks. I have said it before and will say it again, I am not a huge fan of these types of pictures, but it is for the grandparents...

Maybe one of these days I will get my act together and get a picture of me and my big ol' basketball of a belly.

An Update

So this will be just a newsy update with no photos.
MOVING- We are in the process of moving. And, when I say "process", it really is a process. It is nice when the Army comes and packs all your things and unpacks them for you. It is not so nice to move on your own. Especially when the people moving have either a bum leg or are 31 weeks pregnant. The moving plan didn't work out quite how Kyle wanted, and he is gone until Saturday, so Gunnar and I get to hang out with boxes (hopefully I can get a few unloaded) and then Sunday we have to rent a small truck or van to bring the last of our stuff over and do basic cleaning. Kyle then leaves at 1am Monday morning for Italy, so Gunnar and I will sit with even more boxes and attempt to unpack while he is gone. The cleaning list for a self-move (meaning we are choosing to move) is just INSANE! So we will pay $190 for a cleaning team to come in and all we have to do is sweep and make sure no food particles are left in the fridge or oven.
BABY UPDATE- I went to the doctor last week and things are looking good. The baby is healthy and chubby. The doctor said I will have a big baby. NOT COOL, I actually didn't mind delivering my 5 1/2 lbs. baby. So we will see if the doc. is right. He told me Gunnar was going to be a big boy too. I feel huge, but when I was looking at my weight compared to last time according to weeks, I am only about 2 lbs. heavier than I was with Gunnar at this point. This baby like his brother hates for people to listen to his heart-rate. So instead of giving them a good reading them just moves around so much that they can never hear it.
GUNNAR- ...keeps me busy. But a loving, fun little boy. I don't know how anyone can possibly have so much energy! Life has had a lot of adjustments for him lately and he has handled them like a champion. He has been spending time with our friends while we move, we live in a new place, and he sleeps in a big boy bed. I know a big boy bed...crazy. Kyle decided when he moved the crib to convert it into the toddler bed. I was pretty skeptical,  but Gunnar has done great. He loves being able to climb into bed during the day (although he thinks jumping on the bed is great fun too), and he stays in bed at night. Well...he did until tonight. Tonight he was crying and I went in to find him crawling around his room very sad and I imagine scared. I am not sure if he fell out or crawled out.  He fell out one other time in the week he has been in the bed. His room is pitch-black and I am pretty sure he attempted to stand in the corner like he used to in his crib, however there was nothing for him to grab a hold of. It is probably much safer than a crib as Gunnar is a climber and I constantly had to worry about him pulling himself over the side. It would be a good 2 1/2 ft. drop with the crib rails and now it is only about 6-7 inches.
KYLE- He is a busy guy. Today he left for a course to receive a certification to be able to run a paintball field and be a paintball instructor. He is using 3 leave days to attend, but other than that it is all totally free through where he has been volunteering Outdoor Recreation. They send a professional paintball player form the US over to teach the course. I talked to Kyle tonight and he said it is really hard. 2 hours in the classroom and 5 hours of free paintball in the afternoon. :) Sounds rough! He gets back Saturday night, then finishes up the old apartment and moving Sunday, then leaves at 1am on Monday for Italy. He is going with the Club Beyond Middle School group. He will be on the beach for a week...I am jealous! He will get back around 3am on July 4, then at 8:30am we drop Gunnar off with our friend Gina and head to the Passion Play in Oberammergau. We will watch the Passion play there and then come back the evening of July 5. I hope he doesn't get burnt out! Luckily, all this activities are fun.
BETH-So, I am a working woman again. Haha, I was called late last week being ask to teach summer school. It is from June 28-July 23, and 4 hours a day. This week I work in the morning as well, setting up the classroom and such. The money is awesome, more than $40/hour. It should be pretty stress free. I have a class size of 10 (if everyone shows up) and I work with fun people, in a laid back atmosphere. My only concern was finding child-care. I was hoping to find a in-home provider, but there were no openings, and it was a miracle that we were able to get a slot at the Child Development Center. As of Monday Gunnar will officially be in daycare. They only had a full time slot open, and with Kyle being in the Warrior Transition Unit we only pay $196 for a month of care, and were moved from the bottom to the top of the waiting list. Technically I could leave Gunnar from 6am-6pm as that is what we are paying for, but he should only be there from 8-12:30ish.  While I worry about him, I tell myself it is just over 4 hours a day for a month...can they really do to much damage???
I am feeling pretty good. I have really overdone it with the moving, but I hate just standing by and watching. I still have horrible heartburn and am not always able to keep my food down, and sometimes not sleep. But I am working on catching up on rest and relaxation, even if that means sitting with boxes and finding going on a search for clothes every morning.
I do have pictures to post, but until I find which box the cord for downloading the pictures is in, you will just have to read...

Time with Daddy

Gunnar is at such a fun age. He loves to play, tease, and everything in life is so funny to him it just cracks me up. He is such a goof and a pure joy to be around. You can't help but smile when you are in his presence. Gunnar used to not be so interested in Kyle and you may have been able to say the feeling was a little mutual. Kyle has always loved Gunnar, but as Gunnar is getting older you can really see them forming a bond together and loving to have each other around.
I have said it many times, I am sorry Kyle broke his leg, but I think of the year that he would have missed out on if he was still deployed. God really does work in mysterious ways sometimes. I am so thankful to have him home with us, and getting to be part of Gunnar's life at this fun stage not to mention he is able to give this pregnant lady a much needed break every once in a while. Kyle is so rough with Gunnar which at times worries me, but Gunnar thinks it is a blast and is one tough cookie. I sometimes think others are afraid to let Kyle near their baby for fear he may toss them around like he does Gunnar.
Gunnar and Kyle spend more and more time together without me. Kyle will take Gunnar and go do things, and Gunnar no longer screams when I walk out the door and he is left with his dad. Gunnar actually cried today when Kyle left for work which was a first. Poor Gunnar is stuck at home with a pregnant, tired mommy.
Sunday afternoon Kyle took Suesse and Gunnar out to the field to play. Suesse is a poor house-ridden doggy who loves to be outside. We used to take her out for some "freedom" time more often, but I think we have gotten pretty lazy about it. She just loves to run. I am sure the German farmers appreciate our dog running havoc in their fields, but a dog has to have a little freedom once in a while and this is really the only option for us.
Gunnar went with Kyle and Suesse and had a great time playing with sticks and eating rocks. I was with them, but wasn't feeling to great and stayed in the car. They really had fun, and Gunnar was in heaven. Nothing better than fresh air, sticks in your hand, and rocks in your mouth.

Yummy, Rocks. I would think they are a little hard to chew. It's probably a good thing he only has 4 teeth in there to ruin with rocks.

Gunnar is concentrating pretty hard on finding the perfect rock.

He looks pleased with his selection.

Now onto better more dangerous things...long and sharp sticks.

Thanks daddy. I had a great time playing with you and Suesse.