Lately

Rather than filling in the gaps since my last post, I'm going to just skip to now! Trying to catch up is just too daunting. 

Indiana

We are really enjoying our time in IN. George and I are making lots of sweet friends and feel right at home. Everyone from David's work has really eased the transition by their hospitality and generosity. It is so fun to live so close to Lake Michigan and the dunes (basically the beach). We're only about 20 minutes away. Last weekend my dad ("Papa" to George) came to visit and we took the train to Chicago for a day trip. George had a ball riding on the train and hasn't stopped talking about it since. My mom was also able to visit about a month ago which was so fun! David's job is keeping him quite busy, but he's really enjoying it!

George

It's hard to believe that George is about to turn 2 on November 6! We're planning an intimate Curious George themed party for him on Nov. 3. I have to say that this age is the most fun yet. He is sweet, kind, compassionate, and thoughtful. People are always commenting on how mild mannered and mellow he is. He is very obedient and has never told us "no"... not yet at least! 

He absolutely loves reading books and playing with trucks. He can name all kinds of crazy trucks we see on the road: i.e. skid steer, street sweeper, volkswagen (not a truck, I know), tractor shovel, car carrier, cement mixer, excavator, UPS truck, etc. It's wild--half the time I never even notice until he points them out! Each time we go to Target he gets to pick out a new matchbox car/truck and he absolutely adores them. When he wakes up in the morning, the first thing he says is "go play with trucks." His favorite books are books about trucks. Lately, he's been really into Richard Scarry's Cars and Trucks and Things That Go. We read it dozens of times a day. He really loves reading the Bible too. We always read a few Bible stories at night. His favorite is David and Goliath--he can quote it word for word. He really likes Zacchaeus and Noah as well. He has two Bibles: The Beginner's Bible and The Big Picture Story Bible. Are there any other Bible story books that you recommend? Always looking for suggestions!

George also loves singing. He often sings himself to sleep and demands to be sung to sleep before his nap and at bedtime. Favorite songs include Jesus Loves Me, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, ABC song, Daisy Bell (aka Bicycle Built for Two), B-I-B-L-E, Deep and Wide, Father Abraham, Praise Him All You Little Children, You Are My Sunshine, and Skidamarinky-Dinky-Dink. What other songs should I teach him? He's so eager to learn new ones!

This video is a month old, but it's just the most precious thing ever. I'll try to take another video soon. 

Random other amusing George-isms (for my records):

• Parroting ANYTHING we or anyone else says. It's not uncommon for him to overhear someone else's conversation in the grocery store and to repeat it back to them.  
• This child is such a lover. He is always giving hugs and kisses. He will say "give mommy hug and kiss and other hug." We love the "other hug" where he just hugs us on the other side of our neck. Sometimes George calls it my other neck (i.e. "hug other neck").
• He loves jumping and has invented something he calls a "side jump" which looks an awful lot like a regular jump. It's still the cutest thing when he says, "Big jump... now side jump!"
• Boo-boos are a big deal right now. He brings me his boo-boos and as soon as I kiss them, they disappear. He has even initiated kissing my boo-boos when I get hurt (I've had lots of accidents in the kitchen lately!)
• Dramatic play with his Teddy Bear. Teddy Bear is his best pal. Just recently, TB has needed diaper changes, food, drinks, and to use the potty. TB dances, does finger play, and sits in George's high chair too. Just this morning when George lost a truck he said, "Teddy Bear knows how to find it." Unfortunately for all of us, he didn't and the truck is still missing. 
• He takes such pride in his accomplishments. Yesterday he climbed the ladder by himself to the 5 ft. platform on the playground equipment in the backyard and exclaimed, "Yay, Georgie!!! Hooray!"  
• We moved him to a toddler bed about a month or so ago and he never missed a beat. After all my worrying about the transition, it was really a non-event. He even started sleeping on a standard pillow a week ago and seems to love it. 
• He says "bless you" when we sneeze.
• He frequently says "thank you" and "i love you" without being prompted. He loves saying "thank you" to the employees that check us out at the grocery store. 
• When I ask him if his has a stinky diaper, he often responds by saying "just a toot"
• He pronounces elephant as "eff-i-dent" and crocadile as "croc-da-dile". 
• He judges temperature of food or bath water as being "too hot" or "just right"
• When he climbs into bed he says "who miss?" meaning who of his bedtime entourage are missing (i.e. bunny, teddy, lovey). It's like a bedtime rollcall. 
• He has come up with some pretty incredible sentences. i.e. "How about some muffins and french toast and doughnuts and waffles and yogurt?" or "May I please have some honey bunnies?" (What can I say--the kid loves food. He comes by it honestly.) He often says "I want to go see the train." There are lots of trains in this town!
• We'll ask him how old his is and he'll say "one!" and ask him his name and he'll say "George David Clark" (although "Clark" sounds just like "truck").
• He pulls off books from David's bookshelf and asks David to read him a poem.
• When he saw me wrapped in a towel after a shower he said "Mommy's wearing a washcloth!"
• Today at Party City, he kept pointing to ghosts and calling them snowmen.
• He made up a joke at mealtime where he says "uh-oh fork boom" or "uh-oh spoon boom" if he drops his food from his fork/spoon. 
• He thinks it is hilarious to steal our seats.
• He loves playing a game he calls "Where Georgie Are You?" where he hides behind us and we look for him around the house. Often he will give us suggestions of where to look, even though he's behind us. 

Whew! I know this is probably only amusing to us, but I don't want to forget these sweet things. Okay, moving on...

Gemma

So we've decided to name our sweet baby girl Gemma Marie Clark. We've received mixed responses, mostly about pronunciation of the name (it sounds like JEH-ma; like "Emma" with a "J" sound before it). We have been calling her by name ever since we found out she was a girl even though we had not decided on a name, we both naturally just started calling her Gemma. If we have more kids, we're not going to stick to a "G" name. Gemma means "precious stone" or "jewel".

George and Gemma are going to be sharing a room so I'm not really doing a whole lot for the nursery. Here is her bedding, though. I'm not shying away from pink with this girl!

This week marks week 35 of pregnancy (she's due Nov. 26). She is moving constantly and seems to always have the hiccups! Last we checked, she was breech so we'll see if she ends up being stubborn till the end like her brother. Full term is any time after 37 weeks, so we could meet her VERY soon possibly. Everyone keeps telling us how second children tend to come earlier. I'm definitely starting to slow down a little, but I still feel pretty energetic. All in all, I'm pretty comfortable and confident with the idea of labor and having a newborn again. Perhaps I'm in denial?!

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So I'll wrap up this long post with some recent photos:

Till next time!