Snow Days

I've always been okay with Chicago winters. I definitely don't love them, but I also know it's just part of the package of living in Chicago. The spring and summer in this awesome city make braving the winters worth it. I mean, that's what we all tell ourselves, right? Well, this year is a different story. I am so over winter. And yet again this change of heart comes courtesy of motherhood.

Oh my goodness, how much does it suck not to be able to just go to the park every day? Luckily, I've found quite a few decent indoor activities to keep us busy, but it still isn't the same as spending the day outside. Lately, however, with all the snow and crazy cold weather, I've had to get creative inside the house too. Zoe got a great activity table for Chanukah, so we've done plenty of painting, coloring and Play Doh-ing. But, that can only last so long--and art projects simply don't wear out our little energy ball quite enough. So, we've now moved on to forts and tunnels and quite a lot of jumping on the bed/couch. Good times, for sure!

Bubble Trouble

A couple weeks ago, Jody was in New York all week for work, so Zoe and I had plenty of quality girls time. She was really missing her dadd, so I tried making everything a little more fun for her. At bathtime, I decided to give Z her very first bubble bath. I mean, what girl doesn't like a good bubble bath, right? Well, the first night she totally loved it. Playing with the bubbles, squealing and trying to pop them all. Night two, the bubbles were not quite as exciting, but she still liked blowing on them. By night three, she was over it. She kept saying, "No more bubbles," and she even tried jumping out the bath a couple times. So that was that. No more bubbles for Z. Maybe we'll try again in a couple months. At least I was able to snap a few shots of she of her initial reactions to the bubbles on the first night.

More Than Halfway There

Okay, time needs to slow down just a little bit. We had the 20-week ultrasound/appointment a couple weeks ago, and it really hit me that we're having another. I mean, I was so sick with this pregnancy until about 17-18 weeks, so it's not like I haven't noticed having a baby in the belly. But the reality of adding another little girl or guy to our family just hit me. I'm so eager to meet the newest Schirel and so happy to be having another, but I am also freaking out a little just thinking about all the change coming our way.

Anyway, all looked good on the ultrasound. We stuck with our original plan not to find out the gender. I had been thinking boy, but in the past week or two I started getting a girl feeling. We'll find out soon enough! I am finally feeling better, which has been a huge relief. It's so tough to be down for the count when you're trying to be a good mom, work and somehow manage to rest enough to function.

I will post the 20-week ultrasound pic when I get a chance to scan it in. And maybe I'll get a belly picture up here before I get even bigger.