And the baby is...

...A BOY!!!!

We had our doctor's appointment today, and our ultrasound which left little doubt that Number 2 is a little boy. We are excited and thankful that he looks healthy and that we have lots of new boy things to figure out. I have to be honest and say we are a little intimidated, too. Having another girl seemed like it would be a little easier...

This past week has gone by quickly. Last weekend, we went to Raleigh to enjoy some time with my family, and a little R&R as we turned Alden over to Grammy and Auntie Amber. I extended my stay through yesterday, which helped pass the time before our much awaited appointment.

Alden is wild and will probably do really well with a little brother to knock around. She is starting to assert her almost 2 year old temper, and is not afraid to tell us no ("mo") or to yell at Lily when she gets too close to her snack. She is also starting to bite some, which sometimes seems like a game for her to bite, then kiss us and say she is sorry. I would appreciate any advice about the biting...she has already gotten some spankings.

Some of her other antics lately include riding her bike at Grammy's and wanting to run up and down the street while someone else pushes her bike. Amber and I made a lot of laps up to our neighbor, "Mr. Hollywood's" boat that was parked outside his house this past weekend. She is slowly starting to say some more words, including: bo-oat, moon, Amber, and lemonade (na-nade). She got a book called "Tails" this weekend, and is terrified of the skunk page. We have been trying to tell her that skunks are usually friendly, especially the smiley one in the book, and she is slowly warming up to it. She loves to hold our hands when we walk, counting "nie, nie, nie" to be swung in the air, and is always reminding us to pray before meals.

The other morning she got up and asked where Matt was and I told her he was at work. She wanted to pray for him, since we usually do that before he leaves in the morning. It was really sweet, and amazing that she picks up on that.

Two weekends ago, we went to a super bowl party at our friends Ben and Kristen's house. We experimented with putting Alden down in a pack and play at their house, which worked out really nicely. We've also had a fun night with Matt's work friends and their wives, as well as a night babysitting for Bill and Ashley's daughter Ella.

Another one of Alden's latest things is wanting to lay down and have someone cover her with a blanket so she can "sleep" for 5 seconds and then pop up again. She has also made it to the potty a couple more times, and one night didn't quite make it to the potty, and peed on the floor. The visits to the potty are still sporadic, but when she wants to try, we figure we might as well indulge her.

We have had one swim lesson and go back tomorrow for our second. Alden loves the water and has since remembered how to reach and kick, and likes to talk about the ducks she got to play with. She learned how to get out of the pool by herself, and how to wait until Mom counts to three to get in off of the side.

I will post some pictures to complement this shortly. Maybe we can even find a place to scan some ultrasound photos...