The Before-Baby Blurb

April has been a big month for us! We've done a lot and we want to take a chance to celebrate some of it before Baby Biggs #2 makes her debut. For those who can't remember, her due date is May 7th, so she could be here any day! This Mama is hoping sooner rather than later! Without further ado, here are the last few weeks in pictures:

Making pizza for Family Home Evening!

Talking to his grandmas on the applesauce "phone".

Are these parts for Mr. Potato Head or John?

Riding the carousal on the Downtown Mall.

Making cars at the Children's Museum

Matt's extra-long limo

Spring cleaning!

Inspecting the sand table

Picking poppies in the front yard

Jessica with a lemon cupcake that is rumored to induce labor--it didn't work this time!

John helped decorate Mom's belly. 

Feeding the goats at Yoder's Market

Sliding with Grandma Biggs at Bounce 'n Play!

Braving the bouncy slide by himself!

One of many blurry bouncing pictures. We had so much fun!

John's First Year

I can't believe it, but our little guy is one year old! How did this happen?! I haven't been a very good at blogging since he was born. Maybe it has to do with the fact that John is super active and social. He is going, going, going all day. Since he has been here, we have loved getting to know him, and of course, taking lots of pictures. Here is an overview of John's first year!

Little John at the hospital, two days after he was born. 

1 month old

Blessing day-Mother's Day 2013

2 months old

3 months old

4 months old

5 months old

6 months old

7 months old

8 months old

9 months old

10 months old

11 months old

12 months old

Let it Snow!

I absolutely LOVE snow. Not the brown, crunchy, gross snow that's been on the ground for weeks, but the soft, floating flakes coming down from the sky. I love walking as the snow comes slowly and gently towards the ground. Every winter, I have the same sense of wonder as I gaze up towards the sky and watch the flakes almost appear from nowhere. A few days ago, we had our first real snowfall (real=the snow is actually sticking to the ground). Matt knows how much I love the snow, so he had our front window blinds wide open when I woke up. I insisted that we immediately go outside and take pictures. Matt was practical and shoveled the walkway while I dusted off our car. I really wish our baby was here to enjoy it with us! That will just have to wait a while.

Matt dutifully shoveling the snow with a metal shovel.

Matt, looking ruggedly handsome.

We love the snow!

Jessica posing in her new maternity coat in front of our apartment.

The car! Good thing the snow hadn't turned to ice yet!

In other news, we are officially in the third trimester as of this week! Woohoo! The baby bump is definitely getting bigger--and he's still got several pounds to go!

Jessica at 28 weeks.

Giving Thanks at 20 Weeks!

We just got back from a wonderful, relaxing week with both of our families for Thanksgiving. We are in the lucky situation where our parents and siblings are friends, so we didn't have to pick and choose where to spend the holiday. Fortunately, I was feeling pretty good, so the week was a nice change from some of the pregnancy weirdness that's been going on lately. We spent the time eating lots of good food, watching movies, going shopping (for maternity clothes!), laughing, and talking about the baby. My belly isn't too big, so I haven't had any strangers poke it yet, but that did not stop my sister from showing our baby some love. This little baby is definitely coming into this world with lots of love and support. I hope our baby understood that all the rubs and pats were coming from people who are really, really excited about his or her arrival!

Also, this week marks a great milestone in our pregnancy: we're halfway there! 20 weeks is officially the halfway mark--so the countdown begins now! We're excited to find out our little one's gender in a few weeks. It's hard to wait, but seeing our baby's mature features on the ultrasound will be totally worth it! Here are a few pictures of our growing baby bump.

Well, Here We Are!

This post is long overdue, especially since we've been in Charlottesville almost a month! Wow, the time really flew by! Moving is always stressful, but you finally get to the point when you've almost figured out where to hang all your pictures and you can take a few moments to pause.

We had an awesome summer hanging out with family and traveling, but there is something great about settling down in your own place and starting to put together your life again. We aren't living out of suitcases anymore!

Matt just started classes last week, so our schedule has changed quite a bit since then. Matt is gone for most of the day and I have a lot of flexibility with how to use my time. Although it is strange to not be studying or writing papers, I have to say that my new-found freedom is definitely a welcome change. I can do anything! So far, I've joined the local chamber orchestra and signed on with a group that helps adults improve their writing and reading skills. I just recently found out that this same group teaches civics classes to prepare immigrants to apply for US citizenship. As a politics buff, teaching civics is definitely one of my passions, so I am supremely excited to be involved.

We are really loving Charlottesville so far. We've been able to explore many of the local restaurants and met some really awesome people. Here's to the next 5+ years!

Matt putting together a bookshelf in our living/dining room. Fortunately our house doesn't look like this anymore!

Matt and his family in front of Bodo's Bagels, a classic Charlottesville establishment.

Matt and me at Carter's Mountain Orchard near town.

Eating Wayside Chicken with my family--another Charlottesville classic.