So it's official . . . .

We went to Salem yesterday and it is completely official now! Fortunately, Kinsey held off and we were able to do everything we had planned this past weekend. We celebrated with my cousin Ashley and her new husband Dustin on Saturday. And then went to Salem later that night to be there for Sunday morning.

We were also able to meet with the Realtor and start house hunting. However, it didn't go quite as well as we hoped! The houses we saw online that we liked were not the same in person. So that was a little disappointing. But we did see one that was newly on the market that we did really like. But of course it is a little more than we were actually wanting to have to spend. So we'll see! We did have someone come by this evening and look at our house. He was interested, but said he was also going to look at a couple more. We are planning to have an open house on Sunday afternoon, so hopefully we'll get some more leads then.

We expect Kinsey to arrive ANY day now! She dropped on Wednesday and then I did have lots of pressure and a few contractions on Thursday. But David put me on "restriction" so we could make it through the weekend : ) So hopefully things start back up soon . . . . I was cleaning and doing laundry ALL day today so hopefully that will do it : ) We'll let you know as soon as she arrives. We can't wait to meet her!

37 Weeks!

I had a dr. appt. this morning. She said that I measured a week ahead this time. Everything else looks good. Just have to wait for her arrival now! We are hoping that she won't come until after this weekend : ) My cousin Ashley gets married on Saturday. And then we are going down to Salem on Sunday for the official congregational affirmation and then to look at houses that afternoon. So we are hoping that she will wait until after that . . . and then she can come ANYTIME! We'll keep you posted!

36 Weeks

I had my 36 week prenatal appointment on Thursday (10/18). I saw a different midwife this time because Helen was out on Wednesday. She said everything looked fine and I was measuring right on. They did the Group Strep B swab, which I will have the results for when I go again on Wednesday. Every week from now until she arrives! I really need her to stay put until after this next weekend and then she can come whenever she wants : ) We'll keep you posted!!

So, we're moving . . . . .

If you haven't already heard, we are moving to Salem, IL the end of the year! We really feel that God has walked us through this whole process and are excited to see how he uses us in our new ministry at First Christian Church. The staff is young and in fact the Youth and Children's ministers have kids that will be almost exactly the same age as both of ours. We still have MUCH to do here, with selling our house, packing, having Kinsey Grace, finding a new house, doing a Dinner Theater. . . well you get the idea! And we do not look forward to saying good-bye to some VERY dear friends. But we know this is where God is leading us and we trust his calling.

St. Louis Zoo

We took in the Zoo on Saturday morning before heading back home! It was fun for the 3 of us to spend quality time together before Kinsey arrives. So we were thankful for the opportunity to get away! We made it (barely) to the Children's Zoo while it was still free, so we check it out for a while. Here is Jackson posing next to a very BIG rabbit, which I don't think you can really see in the picture.

We also HAD to be sure to check out the penguins, which is our family favorite!! Yes, it is VERY cold inside, but it is just TOO cool to look over the glass and see them right there. We let Jackson down so he could be right up by the glass and see them swimming in the water. He was having a little trouble keeping track of them as they would quickly hop out and then dive back in.

Grant's Farm

We went with The Warner's to Grant's Farm on Friday. Here are a few of the highlights . . .

Jackson loved feeding the goats from OUTSIDE the fence. Daddy took him inside for the second bottle and he was not too crazy about that at all! The goats were a little too aggressive and started jumping up on him, so we finished feeding them outside the fence again : )

At the elephant show, Jackson got to keep the balloon that the elephant blew up with his trunk.

Jackson was watching the kangaroos over the fence. Two of them were sleeping just sprawled out on their backs. I had never seen such a thing before it was very funny!

Here is Blake on the tram ride . . . he was a good boy all day (of course he slept through most of it).

Claire again wasn't too sure about the Clydesdales, but eventually (after some investigation) determined that it would be "OK" to pet the baby horses because "they were nice".

Both of the older kids came home with souvenir Baby Clydesdales named "Dale"! It was a fun day and the weather was BEAUTIFUL! But by the end it was definitely time to go back to The Warner's for naps : )

Our Silly Boy!

We took this picture of Jackson last night. He was "helping" me fold the laundry and he HAD to wear his Cardinal's sweatband. He just cracks me up sometimes! The funniest part is that the sweatband actually came with a 6-9 months outfit that he wore last summer!

Update

Well, I had a doctor's appointment on Wednesday and got the results of my Parvo blood test. It showed that I did have the antibody, which means I have had it before apparently and my body already built up immunity to it. But it did not show any current infection, so Kinsey was at no risk! THANK GOODNESS!!!! So we are very thankful to get that good news : ) She also measured me like 2 1/2 weeks further along, so either she made a mistake or Kinsey just went through a BIG growth spurt all of a sudden. We also found out that our hospital (St. John's) has wireless now, so we will be able to post pictures shortly after Kinsey arrives.

Here is Jackson riding his little motorized motorcycle. A lady down the street saw us on a walk several weeks ago and was going to just throw this in the trash. She thought it didn't work anymore because it is like 30 years old. But Jackson hopped on and pushed down the pedal and started to go down the sidewalk! So it still works . . . and it came home with us : ) He is the one that usually insists on wearing his helmet while riding it too! He is SO funny : )

We are looking forward to heading to Champaign tomorrow night to see the Steven Curtis Chapman Concert. David of course can't wait!!!

Stay tuned for late breaking baby news : )