Joshua is 28 months (2 and 1/3 years old)

So when do we stop saying his age in months, and start using years? Anyway, Joshua is definitely enjoying being 2! He loves his little tricycle, as you can see, which he won at a raffle (I actually think that the raffle was rigged, oh well...at least, we have a happy boy on our hands!). We're trying to enjoy the nice weather before Fall sets in.

Joshua continues to develop exponentially:
- his vocabulary has expanded, and as parents, we are able to decipher "Joshua-ese", and can actually hold somewhat of a conversation with him! He enjoys getting on the phone and chatting with his grandparents.
- he's able to put adjectives and nouns together, eg. blue truck, red car, silly Reggie, Dada tired (yeah, he knows his colors too!)
- he's able to count to 10
- he can sing songs with actions
- he calls his little friends by name. His favorite friend to play with is Nate.
- he is a dance machine!!


Speaking of which, we were in Wisconsin last weekend for Jared's cousin's wedding. We dressed our little man up in a shirt and tie (see pics below). Too cute! We weren't sure how he would do at the reception. Initially, when the music started, he stood at the side to observe (as he always does). Then all of a sudden, he bolts off to the dance floor and starts running circles around people. Circles! Seriously! He gives literal meaning to "dancing circles around you".


We had a lot of fun that weekend. After the wedding, Joshua went home with Grammy and Grandpa, while mommy and daddy went to Green Bay with Uncle Matt and Auntie Anne for a Packer game. Unfortunately, the Pack disappointed. Nevertheless, we still had a good time (shopping at the Osh Gosh Outlet Mall made up for the loss).


I'm excited about October - my favorite month!! We're looking forward to our family vacation to Devil's Lake, WI next week; Fall colors; wearing jeans; apple-picking; dressing up for Halloween; and the Amazing Race starting tomorrow!


Pregnancy update - I'm almost 17 weeks, and feeling great. Praise God! Just tired in the evenings, which I think is normal. My 20 week appointment will be at St. Alexian Hospital where they will do a Level 2 Ultrasound. I'm excited to see if we have a little boy or girl!

Potty Training

Even though I've gone through child-birth, though technically, I never did experience labor, potty training is by far the most challenging thing I've done as a mom!!

Summer 2008

I know, I know...it's about time! I apologize for the long hiatus from blogging, but life has been pretty nutty in the Ahrens household. Okay, I won't insult you with excuses. Since fall is almost upon us, here's a quick snapshot of the highlights of our summer!

* Mexico - In May, Jared and I went to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, for 5 days to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary (for the observant few - yep, our anniversary is actually June 15. However, I had to teach summer school in June, and couldn't take time off. So, we decided to plan an early vacation). It was wonderful! We stayed at an all-inlcusive resort called "Canto Del Sol", and just enjoyed relaxing by the pool, taking walks by the beach, catching the bus into the city, and just enjoyed a week of rest. Joshua spent the week with Grammy and Grandpa (and we only called home twice!).

* Joshua's 2nd birthday - When we got home from Mexico, we had a day before Joshua's birthday party. Our little boy is 2!! So, on Sunday, May 25th, we had a small party at Highpoint Park. All his little friends from our Moms' Group were invited, and it was a beautiful, breezy day. Joshua had an "Animal-themed" party. They enjoyed pizza and cupcakes, and bubbles galore!

On his actually birthday, which happened to be on Memorial Day, we went to the Brookfield Zoo with Grammy and Grandpa. Keeping with the animal theme, we went to the Rainforest Cafe for dinner to continue with the birthday celebration. He loved it! I've included a video...

* Day in Chicago - one Monday in July, we decided to spend the day in Chicago. We drove to Oak Park and caught the El into the city. We got off on Wabash, and found our way to Macy's. From there, we caught the Free Trolley to Navy Pier. Joshua just had a blast on both the El and the Trolley! We went to the Chicago's Children's Museum and spent about 2 hours there. It was huge and rather overwhelming for little ones. Nevertheless, anything with wheels and water entertained Joshua. We had a quick lunch at the food court and then caught the free trolley back to Michigan Avenue. Joshua was able to fall asleep in his stroller, so Jared and I walked around the city for about an hour or so. When he woke up, we went to Millenium Park and played at the water-spouting walls (I don't know what it's called). Needless to say, he was soaked, but he had so much fun! What a perfect day in Chicago!

* U.S. Citizenship - On July 11, I was sworn in as a US citizen! It was a week after the 4th of July, and we drove into the city where I pledged my allegiance to the US alongside 150 other new citizens from 49 different countries. My next order of business as a citizen is to get my passport and register to vote!

* Potty Training - We are currently in the midst of potty training Joshua. It has been a very eventful weekend. We started Thursday morning, and we've basically confined ourselves to the house. Joshua had many accidents, along with a few successes. We celebrate like crazy whenever he pee-pees or poo-poos in the potty. But for the most part, cleaning up messes has become a frequent occurance. Hence, our house smells of Lysol at the moment! (yes, here's his cute little butt...we've kept him bare-bottom the first couple of days)

* New addition to our family - Joshua is going to be a big brother in March! We are very excited, and feel so blessed to have another child. I am now 14 weeks and I'm feeling great (aside from the normal tiredness). Please pray with us for Baby's health, and that God will continue to prepare us to welcome our new addition to our family!

Hope you've enjoyed reading this! I will try to be better at blogging and keep you updated! God bless!

(sorry for how goofy the layout of this blog is. I spent over an hour trying to make it look right, but it's not working!! So, hopefully it's not too bad to read.)