A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words

I'll be honest, most people who read this blog probably already know. For those who do not, I'll let you in on our little secret: we're having another baby! Above are pictures of the newest Nye at 11 weeks. Today I am 14 weeks, which makes this baby due right around August 14, 2011. It should be nice and toasty when we welcome this little one into the world! Chloe and Sophie are so excited to be having another sister or brother! Charlotte sort of understands... She puts her face on my belly and tells me, "I love your baby." Jason and I are so thankful for this gift from God!

Science Fair and SPCS Open House

Thursday night was busy, busy, busy for us! I picked Sophie up from school at 3:15, ran home to get her changed for basketball, grab a snack, and do homework. We were back at school at 4:15 to take Sophie to basketball practice and pick up Chloe from the Science Fair presentation and judging. Basketball practice was over at 5:00, so we went to dinner, then back to school for the Science Fair awards at 6:30 and the Open House at 7:00. I am glad we don't have to do that every night!

Sophie with her artwork for the open house

Chloe with her artwork for the open house

Charlotte had no artwork since she is not in school yet, but she wanted her picture taken as well. Too bad she wouldn't stand still!

Nate on stage with his Science Fair participation ribbon

Chloe with her ribbon... and her friends Elizabeth (left) and Kathryn (right)

Chloe and her Science Fair board

Sophie in her classroom with her snowman project

Chloe in her classroom with her map of Indiana (fourth grade social studies is all about Indiana history)

The Children's Museum

On Wednesday morning, we met Amy, Ryker, Katie, Chaney, Tucker, Paislee, Raendra, Clayton and Collin at the Children's Museum... and I forgot to bring my camera! So, if you want to see pictures check out: Katie's blog or Amy's blog. We started off with a ride on the carousel (some of us had to ride twice) and let the kids play in that area for a while. We also visited the Barbie exhibit, Dinosphere, Fireworks of Glass, and the new Dora & Diego exhibit. Charlotte really likes Dinosphere and was asking about that before we arrived, but she had a great time in the Dora & Diego exhibit too. There were so many great, hands-on things to do and play with. She slid down the slide over and over and over again. She enjoyed putting the stars in the constellations, making her way through the rain forest, and putting the coins in the bank on the pirate ship. We had a wonderful time playing with our friends and getting out of the house for the day!

Snow Bunnies

We survived the ice storm, and then on Saturday morning it started to snow. And snow, and snow, and snow! The original forecast was only for 1"-2", but I think we ended up with more like 5"-6". The girls were eager to get out and play, so Saturday afternoon we turned them loose in the backyard. Our neighbor, Brian, brought his little boy, Clayton (who is Charlotte's buddy) out to play as well. They threw snowballs, slid down the slide, swung on the swings, played with large chunks of ice they found on the swing set, and ate a little snow. Chloe and Sophie even got buried in it. They all had a great time, and Charlotte had to be dragged back indoors.

Ice Storm 2011

The first wave of the ice storm started Monday night and was followed by a second, larger one on Tuesday. UIndy closed their campus on Tuesday and Wednesday, so Jason was home with us (which was very nice). The girls' school was closed Tuesday through Thursday, and opened with a two-hour delay on Friday. However, Chloe caught the virus that everyone seems to be passing around, so she was home sick on Friday as well. I have to admit that I enjoyed having the girls at home and not being required to go anywhere for three days!

The ice covered tree tops in our backyard.

You can see the sheet of ice on the roof of the shed and some icicles.

It looks like the backyard is covered in snow, but it's actually all ice. Pupcake ran out when I opened the door to take pictures. I was not about to venture out there to chase her. Luckily, she came back on her own.

This is my weeping cherry tree by the front door.

The river birch in the front yard.

One of the bushes in the landscaping out front.

This is the two inches of ice on our driveway. I am slowly chipping away at it!

Science Fair 2011

It's that time of year again: Science Fair time. I didn't like it when I had to do it in school, and I don't really like it any more now. Last year was the first year that Chloe had to participate (and she won first prize for 3rd grade at her school). This year her project was: What will happen to hamburgers over time? (I thought it might be interesting. I had seen a woman on a TV special who had a three-year-old hamburger from McDonald's that looked the same as the day she bought it.) Well, let me tell you what happens to hamburgers: they mold. The scary thing is the rate at which they molded. The homemade and Burger King hamburgers molded very quickly. The McDonald's burger took a lot longer. The Wendy's burger... Yikes! It did eventually mold, but you have to look very close and squint at the picture to see it. (So, that woman on TV must have freeze dried her McD's burger or something, and maybe she should be taking a look at Wendy's instead!) The Science Fair was supposed to be this past Thursday, but because of the ice storm it was postponed. I'll let you know how it goes!