Our little Bug and new little Pumpkin

Aila has some big news to share...she is going to be a big sister in October! Baby (aka Little Pumpkin) is due 10-28-08! I'm 20 weeks today and really don't feel or look very pregnant. (I actually just broke the news at work 2 weeks ago.) I haven't felt pregnant the entire time so far. It's actually been pretty weird. I was never sick with Aila either, but I at least felt pregnant. I know there's a little baby in there because my tummy is slowly getting a little rounder and I've been getting kicked since about 13 weeks along. This one is another wiggle worm like Aila was. This one is also going to be a surprise as to boy or girl. I was hoping to secretly find out and not let Josh know that I knew what we were having until after baby was born. I figured that he would be able to read me like a book if he knew that I knew....he wanted it to be a surprise. However, I never did get a chance to ask the sonographer and she was really careful not to dwell in areas that would give it all away. My guess at this point is girl, but I also thought that Aila was a boy. We just have to wait and see! I'm just hoping baby doesn't arrive on Halloween!

Aila had her 18 month checkup yesterday. She is still tiny at 20lbs 12oz and 31 inches long. The doctor was surprised at how much she talks. She definitely is a little chatter box and a little monkey. The doctor asked how many words Aila knows and I guessed around 40 that she says on her own when she wants to do something or sees something that she knows the word for. She can repeat just about anything you say fairly well when she is in the right mood, but I wasn't counting those words. Out of curiosity I started a list of the words she knows...I have surpassed 40 and I keep hearing her name other objects and add them to the list..."moon", "monkey", "cheese"... I'm amazed by her. And when she tells Raven "good gurl" I think its funny. Her favorite words lately are Milk, Bubble, Wash, Cookie, Keys and Purse. She really pronounces them quite clearly. She also likes "pishy" or "fishy" which are goldfish crackers. The constant favorites are "Mommy", "Daddy" & "Doggie". Aila has become quite adept at dragging the kitchen chairs around to the kitchen sink or counter so she can climb up to play in the sink or get things that we really didn't want her to get in to. She even moves the rug out of the way so that she can get her chair right up to the sink to wash dishes...a new favorite activity.



Here's Aila-bug in her new turtle sandbox. She keeps pointing at it through the sliding door and saying "tur" or "turt" for "turtle".

Aila loves to ride Daddy's mower.
One of Aila's favorite things to do is to put on her shoes by herself and run around the house. Here she is wearing her pajamas and her pink shoes.
Grandma Marilyn and Grandpa Mike bought Aila a Magnolia tree that will grow and bloom as Aila grows up. We were supposed to pick it out last summer but never did so we finally got it this summer. Here's Aila and Mommy with the tree before it was planted. Aila was exactly 18 months old when her tree finally found a home in the yard.